New Delhi, July 7 The Supreme Court has expressed anguish over inordinate delay of 865 days by the Gujarat government in filing the special leave petition (SLP) against the judgment of a division bench of the Gujarat High Court delivered on July 25, 2018.
The top court dismissed the petition with a cost of Rs 25,000.
A bench comprising Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and M.R. Shah said: "We disapprove of the manner in which the present Special Leave Petition has been filed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Traffic Branch, Ahmedabad and by the Home Department of the State of Gujarat."
A single judge of the high court had, in February 2017, directed the authority concerned to grant compassionate pension to the police head constable, who was retired compulsorily after a disciplinary enquiry, from March 21, 2002 and pay arrears within a period of one month. The division bench of the high court declined to interfere with this order.
The top court noted that the circumstances in which the direction for compassionate pension was issued under Rules 78 and 79 of the Gujarat Civil Services (Pension) Rules 2002 was that one child of the respondent is mentally challenged and another is polio affected.
"Despite these facts bearing on the hardship involved in the matter, the state chose to litigate the matter with a delay of 200 days before the division bench and is now before us in a Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution with a delay of 856 days," said the bench in its July 5 order.
The bench noted that besides the delay of 200 days in filing a letters patent appeal before the High Court, there is an additional delay of 856 days in filing the SLP against the high court judgment. "We decline to condone the delay," it said.
The bench noted that such litigation adds to expenses, costs and delay and, ultimately, postpones the date on which the benefit of a judgment which accrues to the private citizen can be granted.
"We accordingly disapprove of the manner in which the State of Gujarat has moved this Court with a gross and unexplained delay and, dismiss the Special Leave Petition on the ground of delay with costs. The petitioners shall deposit costs of Rs 25,000 with the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee within four weeks," it said.
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