The Bihar Judicial Services Association (BJSA) has urged the state government to provide at least one personal security officer or bodyguard to every serving judicial officer below the rank of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), citing security concerns arising from the nature of their duties.
In a letter addressed to the principal secretary (home), BJSA secretary Ajit Kumar Singh sought an early review of the state government’s May 2, 2017 resolution, which does not permit allotment of bodyguards to judicial officers below the CJM rank.
The association said the existing policy should be made more inclusive and argued that security entitlement should not be determined only by designation.
Security Risks Linked to Judicial Work
BJSA pointed out that Judicial Magistrates perform functions comparable to CJMs under the decentralised judicial system, where cognisance powers have been distributed and police stations assigned among magistrates.
It said Junior Magistrates regularly deal with accused persons, undertrial prisoners and litigants in sensitive criminal cases, including matters involving organised crime, Maoist activities and other offences with security implications.
According to the association, Additional CJMs and Judicial Magistrates of the First Class also exercise cognisance powers similar to CJMs and therefore face substantial security risks.
Women Judicial Officers Also Flagged
The association also referred to the rising number of women officers in the Bihar judiciary, many of whom are serving as Civil Judge Junior Division and Civil Judge Senior Division.
Under the existing resolution, these officers are not entitled to bodyguards. BJSA said the policy required reconsideration, particularly in view of the state government’s efforts to increase women’s representation in government jobs and its decision to establish more courts in subdivisions.
The letter further said that infrastructure limitations require many judicial officers to travel from district headquarters to subdivisional courts, exposing them to additional risks during commuting and at places where security arrangements remain limited.
BJSA has therefore asked the state government to reconsider the 2017 policy and extend personal security coverage to judicial officers below the rank of CJM on the basis of the risks attached to their judicial functions.
