R.V. Raveendran, C.J.

1. Many a time, the Courts are required to take inconvenient decisions, contrary to public opinion and personal sympathies. This is one such case. In this PIL, the appointment of third respondent, as a Commercial Tax Officer, on compassionate grounds, is challenged as being wholly illegal, arbitrary and prejudicial to public interest.

2. Third respondent is the widow of one R. K. Jain. The said R. K. Jain was working as Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Tax, Bhopal. He had put in about 25 years of service. The department considered him to be an excellent officer. On 14-7-2004, he was arrested by the Police Officers of the Special Police Establishment attached to Lokayukt, Madhya Pradesh, allegedly while accepting a bribe of Rs. 2,000/- from one Vinod Chhajad, Tax Practitioner. It would appear that he was detained and tortured in the office of Superintendent of Police, Special Police Establishment, Lokayukt, Bhopal. While in such Police custody, he was rushed to Hamidia Hospital, Bhopal, where he died. Postmortem examination disclosed the cause of his death as Asphyxia. The postmortem report also revealed fracture of ribs and other injuries on his body. It w