The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted two weeks to the Union government to sort out issues relating to the installation of CCTVs at all police stations across the country to prevent custodial torture, following an assurance from attorney-general R. Venkataramani.

A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta passed the direction while dispensing with the personal appearance of the Union home secretary, who had earlier been summoned by the court over the delay in complying with the directions passed by the apex court in September last year.

The bench also orally took exception to the Centre convening an earlier round of meetings with states and Union Territories on the installation of CCTV cameras with an officer of the rank of undersecretary in the home ministry.

Justice Nath told Venkataramani that it was improper for the government to depute an undersecretary-rank officer for such a high-level matter in which court-appointed amicus curiae and senior advocate Sidharth Dave was also present to coordinate the process.