Writ Law - Locus Standi - Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act 1948 - Section 32-G - Person Aggrieved - Petitioners holding registered Agreement for Sale and having paid substantial consideration challenged orders determining purchase price in favor of others - Tribunal dismissed challenge on ground that petitioners were not parties to original proceedings and lacked perfected title - Held - Test for a person aggrieved is whether order causes real legal prejudice or affects a legally recognizable interest - Registered Agreement for Sale coupled with payment of consideration and pending civil litigation for specific performance constitutes sufficient interest to challenge tenancy orders despite not being an absolute owner - Impugned orders set aside and matters restored for fresh consideration - [Paras 29-62].

Civil Law - Specific Performance - Code of Civil Procedure 1908 - Order XXXIX Rules 1 and 2 - Pendency of civil suit for specific performance and existence of status quo order - Whether such pendency bars challenge to tenancy proceedings - Held - Pendency of a civil suit does not preclude a person from challenging orders under the Tenancy Act that affect the subject matter of their claim provided they demonstrate legal prejudice - [Paras 37-55].

Tenancy Law - Procedure for Sale - Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act 1948 - Section 64 - Mandate of procedure - Whether failure to follow Section 64 bars a purchaser under an Agreement for Sale from challenging tenancy orders - Held - While Section 64 prescribes mandatory procedures for sale of agricultural land and invalidates unauthorized sales it cannot be used to summarily reject the locus of a person asserting a registered contractual interest who is otherwise prejudicially affected by the impugned order - [Paras 40-42].

Evidence Law - Power of Attorney - Agency - Validity of representation in quasi-judicial proceedings - Dispute regarding revocation of Power of Attorney and authority of representatives to represent parties before A.L.T. and S.D.O. - Held - Authority of persons representing parties in tenancy proceedings is a material issue that requires verification by the authority before finalizing proceedings under Section 32-G - [Paras 47-48].

Decision: Petitions allowed – Impugned orders of Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal and lower revenue authorities quashed and set aside – Revision Applications restored for fresh adjudication – Parties directed to appear before Tribunal on 07/09/2026 – Directions for disposal within six months.

Criminal Law - Double Jeopardy - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 300 - Petitioner sought to summon respondents who were previously acquitted - Trial court dismissed application on grounds of protection against double jeopardy - High Court affirmed that a subsisting judgment of acquittal remains binding and cannot be rendered ineffective indirectly via a supplementary police report - Re-investigation order does not automatically set aside an acquittal - Held - Impugned order of trial court maintained - [Paras 15-24].

Criminal Law - Judicial Discipline - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 482 - Effect of breach of stay order - Petitioner contended that acquittal was nullity as it was pronounced in defiance of High Court stay - Court held that even a hypothetically void order remains presumptively valid and operative until it is judicially challenged and set aside in appropriate appellate proceedings - A collateral proceeding cannot nullify an earlier judgment of acquittal - Held - Judgment of acquittal remains in force until formally set aside - [Paras 16-18].

Criminal Law - Re-investigation vs Retrial - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 173(8) - Distinction between fresh investigation and retrial - Court clarified that power to direct re-investigation does not equate to power to set aside a final acquittal - Without a specific direction for retrial or an order setting aside the acquittal, the bar under Section 300 CrPC continues to apply - Held - Supplementary report alone cannot override the statutory protection against double jeopardy - [Paras 19-21].

Evidence Law - Finality of Adjudication - Indian Evidence Act 1872 - Section 115 - Judicial determination - Trial Court rightly exercised threshold examination of legal competence to subject acquitted persons to second trial - Mere naming of respondents in a supplementary report under Section 173(8) CrPC does not constitute new evidence or fresh cause to overcome the statutory bar - Held - Petition dismissed - [Paras 22-24].

Decision: Petition dismissed – Trial court order affirmed – Petitioner granted liberty to pursue appropriate legal remedies against the initial judgment of acquittal in accordance with law.

Criminal Law - Juvenile Justice - Juvenile Justice Act 2015 - Sections 8, 12, 18, 39 - Rehabilitative Justice - Courts exercising bail jurisdiction under the JJ Act are legally mandated to discharge adjudicatory functions and dispense restorative justice - This requires the Board or Court to assess the need for an individual child care plan (R&R programme) and school admission even at the stage of bail - The Court held that the Children's Court/JJB must act as parens patriae and ensure that children are not abandoned to their own devices post-release - Held - The High Court and trial courts are obligated to initiate R&R programmes and facilitate school integration to prevent the bail process from becoming a reductionist and purely penal exercise - [Paras 1-56].

Writ Law - Right to Education - JJ Act 2015 read with RTE Act 2009 - Education as an integral component of R&R - The Court held that the constituent elements of education in an R&R plan are fundamentally linked to the Right to Education under Article 21A of the Constitution and the RTE Act - Educational institutions and teachers can be nominated as fit institutions and fit persons for post-release reintegration after due enquiry - Held - Lack of budgetary allocation or rules cannot frustrate the statutory duty to provide education to children in conflict with law - [Paras 79-102].

Evidence Law - Procedural Requirements - JJ Rules 2016 - Fit Facilities and Fit Persons - Recognising the current deficiency in identified fit facilities, the Court issued mandatory directions for the identification of schools and teachers as fit entities to implement the educational component of R&R programmes - Held - The State Government is directed to frame rules and create an ecosystem ensuring that rehabilitative services are not stalled by executive inertia - [Paras 142-169].

Decision: Appeals allowed - Bail granted to the appellant with specific directions for the implementation of an R&R programme including academics, yoga, and vocational activities - Directions issued to JJBs/Children's Courts across Uttar Pradesh to ensure the assessment of educational and rehabilitative needs during all bail proceedings.

Writ Law - Police Recruitment - Telangana Police (Stipendiary Cadet Trainee) Rules 1999 - Rule 3(G)(vi) - Disqualification - Petitioner provisionally selected for Police Constable - Selection cancelled based on prior involvement in criminal case involving IPC and POCSO Act sections - Trial Court acquitted petitioner after prosecution witnesses turned hostile - Respondent No.2 passed impugned order stating acquittal was not clean and offence involved moral turpitude - High Court observed that mechanical reliance on charge sheet without independent assessment of material evidence is arbitrary - Held - Respondent failed to demonstrate evidence of moral turpitude and acted without application of mind - Impugned order set aside - [Paras 11-25].

Criminal Law - Moral Turpitude - Indian Penal Code 1860 - Sections 354-A, 354-D, 376(2)(n), 376(3), 506 - Definition of moral turpitude - Whether every criminal case leads to disqualification - Held - Merely being named in a charge sheet does not constitute moral turpitude - Employer must apply tests of shock to moral conscience and depraved character to assess if offence involves moral turpitude - [Paras 18-19].

Evidence Law - Acquittal - Principles of Judicial Review - Recruitment process - Effect of hostile witnesses - Respondent dismissed candidate on ground that acquittal was based on witnesses turning hostile - Held - Unless there is evidence on record linking the candidate to the crime or demonstrating the commission of the offence beyond mere allegation, the State cannot deny appointment - [Paras 20-21].

Writ Law - Public Employment - Abuse of Process - POCSO Act 2012 - Harassment - High Court highlighted misuse of POCSO Act as a weapon of harassment in cases of civil or local enmity - Held - Authorities must shun sweeping allegations at the threshold and perform objective assessment of criminal records before denying public appointment - [Para 22].

Decision: Writ Petition allowed - Impugned Memorandum dated 05.12.2024 set aside - Respondents directed to continue the petitioner's selection and issue appointment orders for the post of SCT PC (Civil) within four weeks.

Civil Law - Code of Civil Procedure 1908 - Order 26 Rule 9 - Appointment of Survey-Knowing Advocate Commissioner - Plaintiff sought commission to measure disputed 3-foot common passage and alleged encroachment by water reservoir - Trial court rejected plea citing documentary sufficiency and pendency of suit since 2012 - High Court held that oral evidence and title deeds are insufficient to determine physical encroachment and spatial coordinates - Court emphasized that a survey-knowing commissioner acts as the eyes and ears of the court - High Court set aside the impugned order and directed the appointment of a commission while mandating strict timelines to conclude the trial - Held - Order of the trial court was a jurisdictional error - [Paras 1-21].

Civil Law - Local Investigation - Code of Civil Procedure 1908 - Order 26 Rule 9 - Duty of Court - The court is under a binding judicial duty to invoke the power of local investigation whenever physical measurements, spot-level boundaries, or structural obstructions form the core foundation of a lis - Mere documentary proof of title does not obviate the necessity of establishing physical spot-level boundaries and overlapping encroachments through an independent scientific survey report - Held - Denial of commission in encroachment disputes creates an evidentiary vacuum - [Paras 13-19].

Civil Law - Procedural Law - Delay in Litigation - The court observed that while a litigant cannot be permitted to use procedural provisions as a tool for procrastination, the remedy for long pendency of a suit is not the outright denial of vital scientific evidence - Instead the court must balance equities by imposing strict timelines and costs to compel expedition - Held - Procedural delay is not a valid ground to shut out evidence that goes to the root of the matter - [Paras 17-19].

Decision: Revisional application allowed - Impugned order dated 01/02/2025 set aside - Trial Court directed to appoint a survey-knowing Commissioner within two weeks and conclude the suit within six months.

Criminal Law - Bail - Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 - Section 58 - Constitutional violation - Petitioners were apprehended by Excise officials on 23.08.2025 during patrolling but were shown to be arrested on 24.08.2025 at 1.50 AM and 2.00 AM respectively - Overwriting in arrest memos and discrepancies in official reports indicated detention began much earlier than the recorded time - Petitioners produced before the Magistrate at 7.30 PM on 24.08.2025 - Court held that factoring in travel time from the spot of occurrence the production before the Magistrate was well beyond the 24-hour limit prescribed by Article 22(2) - Vitiation of arrest and remand - Held - Arrest and subsequent remand of petitioners stand vitiated due to non-compliance with constitutional and statutory safeguards - Petitioners granted bail - [Paras 3-7].

Criminal Law - Arrest and Custody - Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 - Section 43 - Definition of arrest - Arresting officer touched or confined the bodies of the accused during detection which constitutes arrest under Section 43 - Court held that custody and arrest are distinct but detention begins when a person is under duress of a law enforcement agency - Protection of personal liberty under Article 22(2) of the Constitution of India is absolute - Failure to produce within 24 hours exclusive of journey time renders the detention and subsequent remand illegal - Held - Mandatory nature of constitutional safeguard requires strict adherence - [Paras 5-6].

Decision: Bail applications allowed – Petitioners directed to be released on bail upon furnishing bail bonds of Rs. 1,00,000/- each with two solvent sureties to the satisfaction of the trial court – Directions issued for immediate communication of order to the concerned Jail via e-mail.

Tax Law - Sales Tax - Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act 1957 - Limitation - Revisional jurisdiction - Original assessment order passed on 21.12.2001 - Reassessment order confined strictly to sales tax exemption on goods supplied to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams passed on 09.07.2002 - Revisional authority attempted to revise rate of tax on laminated paper through an order dated 07.07.2006 - Court held that since the reassessment order did not address the rate of tax or modify the original assessment regarding that issue there was no merger of the original assessment into the reassessment - Limitation for revision began from original order and had expired - Held - Revisional order is time-barred and unsustainable - [Paras 1-11].

Tax Law - Doctrine of Merger - Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act 1957 - Limitation - Scope of reassessment - Doctrine of merger applies only when a subsequent order deals with the specific issue considered in the earlier order and modifies or confirms the view taken - Mere passing of a partial reassessment order does not extend the limitation period for the entire original assessment order if the specific tax issue was not reopened - Held - Entire assessment order does not merge into the reassessment order - [Paras 7-9].

Decision: Tax Revision Case dismissed - No order as to costs - Pending miscellaneous petitions closed.

Civil Law - Recovery of Money - Code of Civil Procedure 1908 - Section 100 - Appeal against concurrent findings - Trial Court and First Appellate Court decreed suit for recovery based on documentary evidence and testimony of attesting witnesses - Appellants contended that trial court relied on hearsay and failed to prove inheritance of estate - High Court observed that lower courts correctly appreciated the evidence regarding the loan transaction and the execution of the promissory note - Held - No substantial question of law arose - Appeal dismissed - [Paras 1-58].

Civil Law - Limitation - Limitation Act 1963 - Section 18 - Acknowledgment of debt - Loan amounts advanced on different dates in 2014 and 2017 consolidated into a single promissory note dated 01.05.2017 - Held - Acknowledgment in writing of a debt in the promissory note effectively extended the period of limitation - Suit held to be within the period of limitation - [Paras 30-41].

Civil Law - Legal Heir Liability - Code of Civil Procedure 1908 - Section 50 - Liability of legal representatives - Appellants argued they inherited no estate from the deceased debtor - Evidence emerged of sale of property by legal heir shortly after debtor's demise - Appellants withheld sale deed documents to prove ownership status - Held - Adverse inference drawn against appellants regarding inheritance of estate - Liability of legal heirs stands affirmed to the extent of the inherited estate - [Paras 50-56].

Evidence Law - Burden of Proof - Indian Evidence Act 1872 - Section 101 - Friendly loan - Plaintiff established advancement of funds via bank statements and testimony of attesting witnesses - Defendants failed to challenge signatures on instruments or lead forensic evidence to prove forgery - Held - Plaintiff successfully discharged the initial burden of proof - [Paras 22-48].

Decision: Appeal dismissed – Concurrent judgments and decrees of the lower courts upheld – Pending applications disposed of.

Service Law - Pension - Uttar Pradesh Service Rules - Qualifying Service - Petitioner was engaged as Seasonal Collection Amin in 1984 and later regularized in 2016 before retiring in 2019 - Respondents rejected pension claim on the ground of insufficient regular service - Court relied on Prem Singh v. State of U.P. (2019) and Uday Pratap Thakur v. State of Bihar (2023) - Held - Previous ad-hoc and seasonal services must be counted for determining qualifying service for pension eligibility - However quantum of pension must be calculated strictly on the basis of regular service rendered - Writ petition allowed with directions to sanction pension and retiral dues - [Paras 13-28].

Service Law - Pension - Qualifying Service - Computation - Distinction between qualifying service and quantum of pension - Held - While entire length of service including seasonal/ad-hoc phases counts towards the 10-year threshold for pension eligibility the actual pension amount is restricted to the period of regular service only - [Paras 25-26].

Decision: Writ Petition No. 20364 of 2019 allowed - Respondents directed to calculate and pay retiral dues and sanction pension within eight weeks - Writ Petition No. 15905 of 2014 dismissed as infructuous.