SUNILKUMAR POPATBHAI PATEL Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present Application is filed by the Applicants / Original Petitioners seeking to initiate contempt proceedings under the Contempt of Courts Act 1971 against Respondent No.3 - Secretary, Finance Department, Sachivalaya Gandhinagar for willfully and intentionally disobeying the order dtd. 22/7/2022 passed by this Court in Special Civil Application No. 2160 of 2019 as well as order dtd. 20/2/2023 passed by this Court in Misc. Civil Application No. 155 of 2023.

(2.) Learned Advocate for the Applicants submitted that after the issuance of the Notice, the State Authorities have passed an order dated 1 st July 2023, granting benefits to only four Applicants. However, thirteen Applicants are not granted the benefits, which runs contrary to the directions issued by this Court in its judgment and order dtd. 22/7/2022. It is submitted that once the writ petition is allowed, the Respondent authorities are required to consider the case of the Petitioners as per the directions issued by this Court, and the order dtd. 1/7/2023, which is passed by the Respondent authorities, is contemptuous, and in fact, the Respondent authorities have exercised their authority, however they cannot sit on appeal on the judgment, of which compliance is sought for. In support of his submission, learned Advocate for the Applicants has placed reliance on the judgment of the Supreme Court in case of V.Senthur v. M.Vijayakumar reported in 2021 (11) SCC 566 as well as the judgment in the case of Anil Ratan Sarkar v. Hirak Ghosh reported in 2002 (4) SCC 21.

(3.) Thus, it is submitted that appropriate proceedings may be instituted against the Respondent authorities.