#administrative law

CAT Jammu holds regularised ReT teachers cannot face discriminatory transfer restrictions based on initial recruitment mode; impugned repatriation orders set aside.

The Bombay High Court quashed Scrutiny Committee orders rejecting Scheduled Tribe caste validity certificates, ruling that a pre-Independence birth record cannot be dismissed as interpolated without expert handwriting analysis. The court directed issuance of certificates within three weeks, safeguarding applicants' rights against arbitrary rejection of historical documentary evidence.

The Gujarat High Court ruled that a minor’s temporary move due to a parent’s job transfer does not break continuous residence for a domicile certificate. It quashed the rejection and ordered issuance within three weeks, affecting minors facing parental transfers.

Revenue Standing Order 26(15) cannot convert patta land to government property without due process, the Madras HC held, quashing the Section 6 notice under the TN Land Encroachments Act. The court awarded ₹10,000 costs and ordered compensation for 100 felled trees.

It quashed the rejection order against the petitioner and directed Coal India Limited to appoint him as an Accountant within four weeks. The decision clarifies that medical standards must tie directly to job functions to avoid arbitrary disqualification.

The Calcutta HC ruled that school authorities must weigh all evidence under the preponderance of probabilities standard and cannot dismiss teaching staff appointments based solely on a 1988 inspection report. The ruling protects employees appointed between 1995-97 seeking regularization of their service.

The Calcutta High Court set aside HPCL’s withdrawal of LOI and forfeiture of ₹20,000 deposit, holding it violated RPWD Act 2016’s reasonable accommodation and directing reconsideration of petitioner request to substitute a disabled applicant in 8 weeks.

The Karnataka HC ruled a 3-year-8-month delay in the final declaration under the KIAD Act broke statutory connectivity, but severability confined relief to landowners who challenged proceedings and refused compensation. Others were barred by estoppel and laches. The decision prevents procedural delays from automatically invalidating entire acquisition schemes where parties have acquiesced.

The Punjab & Haryana HC held that a CBFC Regional Officer lacks power to refuse film certification absent valid Section 7B delegation. It set aside the refusal and directed the Chairperson to reconsider the application for 'Chardikala' with a hearing within statutory timelines.

The court ruled that a contractual forum-selection clause cannot exclude the High Court's Article 226 writ jurisdiction, and that blacklisting a contractor as a 'Poor Performer' requires a show-cause notice specifying the exact grounds and proposed penalty, not merely an automatic consequence of contract termination. The two-year debarment order was set aside for violating natural justice.

The Supreme Court upheld the NCTE's Public Notice requiring Teacher Education Institutions to submit annual Performance Appraisal Reports, holding the Executive Committee authorised to enforce the Council's policy. The ruling affirms regulatory accountability mechanisms are intrinsic to statutory regulators, overturning a High Court verdict that struck down the mandate as arbitrary.

The Calcutta High Court held that the fifteen-working-day period mandated by Section 12(4) of the West Bengal Panchayat Act for a no-confidence meeting cannot be extended, even when police support is lacking, and reinstated the ousted Pradhan. This enforces strict statutory compliance for gram panchayats statewide.

The CAT set aside a charge memorandum lacking Finance Minister’s approval, ruling that only the Disciplinary Authority may sanction charge sheets under Rule 14 CCS (CCA) Rules, 1965. The holding confines disciplinary power to the authority, shielding senior revenue officials from ministerial sanction misuse.

The Gauhati High Court ruled that a Deputy Commissioner cannot set aside a duly registered sale deed, as only a civil court has jurisdiction to annul registration under the Registration Act, 1908. Consequently, the registrar’s authority ends once registration is effected, protecting buyers and sellers from administrative cancellation. This decision safeguards the finality of property transactions in Assam.

Uttarakhand High Court ruled that halting an ongoing promotion exercise to revise service rules is arbitrary and breaches the right to be considered for promotion under existing rules. The court ordered the promotion to proceed based on the service rules in force on 31 December 2020, protecting senior Group-B officers from ad-hoc rule changes.