819 Haryana policemen axed

<div class="section0"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-size:="">CHANDIGARH: The Bhupinder Singh Hooda-led government has ordered the quashing of “irregular� selection of 819 police constables by the previous Om Prakash Chautala government during the enforcement of the model code of conduct in the state in connection with the Haryana assembly polls.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">The government is learnt to have conveyed its decision to the state police chief to relieve the 61 constables, who were given their appointment letters and had joined the force and quash the selection of the remaining constables, who were not issued their appointment letters.The state government has however decided that the affected persons will remain eligible for selection in future recruitments to the police force on merit. </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">The decision has been taken on the recommendation of the police department and after seeking the opinion of the law department. The government had also asked the police department to probe the role of the district selection boards in Bhiwani, Rewari, Karnal and Kurukshetra headed by the then district SPs A S Chawla, Hanif Qureshi, Vikas Arora and Bharti Arora in the recruitments, which were done in a tearing hurry.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-size:="">Following complaints of violation of the model code of conduct made by the then opposition Congress, the election commission had sent a two-member probe committee to Haryana, which had prima facie found the allegations to be true.</span><br /><span style="" font-size:="">While directing the state government go put an immediate stop to the process, the commission had also ordered the removal of the then state police chief M S Malik and appointed the present state police chief A S Bhatotia in his place.</span><br /></div> </div>