Superintendence: Section 4

In one line

As enacted the Central Government superintended the whole force; since 2003 the Central Vigilance Commission superintends its corruption investigations, the Central Government superintends everything else, and the Director administers it; and superintendence, the Supreme Court has held, never included the power to direct a particular investigation.

In the wording a student can write in an exam: section 4 of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act 1946, as substituted by section 26(b) of the Central Vigilance Commission Act 2003 with effect from 11 September 2003, provides that the superintendence of the Establishment in so far as it relates to the investigation of offences alleged to have been committed under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 shall vest in the Commission, that save as so provided the superintendence in all other matters shall vest in the Central Government, and that the administration shall vest in an officer appointed by the Central Government called the Director, who shall exercise such of the powers of an Inspector-General of Police as that Government may specify; and in Vineet Narain v. Union of India, (1998) 1 SCC 226, the Supreme Court held that superintendence in section 4(1) does not include control of the initiation and the actual process of investigation.

Section 4 as it now stands

4(1). The superintendence of the Delhi Special Police Establishment in so far as it relates to investigation of offences alleged to have been committed under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 shall vest in the Commission.

4(2). Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (1), the superintendence of the said police establishment in all other matters shall vest in the Central Government.

4(3). The administration of the said police establishment shall vest in an officer appointed in this behalf by the Central Government, referred to as the Director, who shall exercise in respect of that police establishment such of the powers exercisable by an Inspector-General of Police in respect of the police force in a State as the Central Government may specify in this behalf.

The three-way split, and it must be written out exactly.

And the word that decides the value of the first row is "administration". Postings, transfers, promotions, discipline, deployment, resources: all administration, all outside the Commission. Chapter 750 drew the conclusion; this is the section it rests on.

What section 4 said before 2003

As enacted, section 4 vested the superintendence of the Establishment in the Central Government simply, without division and without any mention of a commission.