NEW DELHI: An ‘umbrella law’ introduced by the Union government on Wednesday for Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) will regulate recruitment, deputation, promotion, and other conditions of service for their officers.
All CAPFs – CRPF, CISF, BSF, ITBP and SSB – are governed by their respective Acts.
The rules under these Acts govern the recruitment and conditions of service for Group A General Duty Officers and other officers and members in the CAPFs.
Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai on Wednesday introduced the Central Armed Police Forces (General Administration) Bill, 2026, in the Rajya Sabha.
The bill provides that to appoint officers from the Indian Police Service in CAPFs, 50 per cent of the posts will be filled by deputation in the rank of inspector general and a minimum of 67 per cent of the posts by deputation in the rank of additional director general.
Posts in the ranks of special director general and director general shall be filled by deputation only, it says.
The proposed legislation comes after the Supreme Court, in October last year, dismissed the Centre’s plea seeking a review of its 2025 verdict that directed that IPS officers’ deputation in the CAPFs up to the level of Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) should be “progressively reduced” and asked for a cadre review to be carried out in six months.
“…the number of posts earmarked for deputation in the cadres of the CAPFs up to the level of Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) should be progressively reduced over a period of time, say within an outer limit of two years,” the apex court had said.
According to the bill’s statement of objects and reasons, the expanding functional and operational requirements have led to the distinct organisational structure of these forces.
“In recent years, due to the absence of an umbrella law, regulatory provisions have evolved in a fragmented manner, resulting in several litigation on service-related matters, leading to some functional and administrative difficulties,” it reads.
A group of retired CAPF officers has approached the Supreme Court with a contempt plea against Home Secretary Govind Mohan for not implementing its October order in this regard.
“The proposed CAPF Regulation Bill, 2026, assumes considerable importance. Any legislative intervention affecting the command structure, service conditions and leadership opportunities within CAPFs inevitably carries implications not only for institutional morale but also for the operational effectiveness of forces responsible for protecting India’s internal stability and border security,” the group had said in a press statement on March 20.
The bill states that under Article 312 of the Constitution, the IPS is an All-India Service and its officers are posted in the Union and the States.
“Historically, Indian Police Service officers are an integral and important part of the Central Armed Police Forces, who have been serving on deputation along with officers and members of these Forces,” the objectives of the bill state.
The CAPFs perform functions relating to national security and anti-insurgency in close coordination with the state authorities, it said.
“Therefore, in the interest of maintaining Centre-State relations by ensuring close coordination between the Union and the States for effective operational functioning, it is essential to maintain the existing system of deputation of the Indian Police Service Officers in the Central Armed Police Forces,” the bill circulated among Rajya Sabha members said.
The statement of objects and reasons for the proposed law said the CAPFs are governed by respective Acts of Parliament.
It said that, considering the nature and purposes of the CAPFs and to avoid unnecessary litigations, there is a need to enact an umbrella law to regulate the recruitment, deputation, promotion of Group A General Duty Officers and other officers appointed in the CAPF.
This is needed to ensure legislative clarity, preserve their distinct operational and functional requirements and harmonise judicial directions with administrative and federal requirements.
According to the proposed law, “Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, or in any judgment, decree or order of any court; or any order issued from time to time, the central government may, by notification, make rules to provide for the method, manner and mode of recruitment including promotion and deputation and the conditions of service of officers in the Central Armed Police Force.”
The Supreme Court had in October rejected the Centre’s plea seeking the review of the May 23, 2025, verdict by a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka (since retired) and Ujjal Bhuyan.
In the May order, the court directed the Centre to conduct a cadre review, which was due in 2021, in all the CAPFs within six months.
It also directed the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to take an appropriate decision within three months of receiving the action-taken report from the home ministry regarding the cadre review and a review of the existing service rules or recruitment rules.
