Delhi High Court - Orders
Hari Om Maratha vs Union Of India & Ors on 19 May, 2022
Author: Subramonium Prasad
Bench: Subramonium Prasad
$~54
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019
HARI OM MARATHA ..... Petitioner
Through: Ms. Nupur Sharma, Adv.
versus
UNION OF INDIA & ORS ..... Respondents
Through: Mr. Vivek Goyal, Adv for UOI.
Mr. Anshuman Sharma, Adv for R-2
and R-8.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SUBRAMONIUM PRASAD
ORDER
% 19.05.2022 CM APPL. 23778/2022
1. This application has been filed by the Respondents No.2 & 8 seeking early hearing of CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019.
2. For the reasons stated in the application, the same is allowed and CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019 is being taken up for hearing today.
3. The application is disposed of.
CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019
4. The instant contempt petition has been filed for the alleged non- compliance of the order dated 14.02.2019, passed by this Court in W.P.(C) 2690/2017. Relevant portion of the said order reads as under:
"21. Before concluding, this Court must express its displeasure as to the conduct of CSOI. The averments made in the petition indicate that the petitioner had applied on 21.08.2012 but he received no response to Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed By:HARIOM SINGH KIRMOLIYA CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019 Page 1 of 3 Signing Date:20.05.2022 12:17:41 his application. The petitioner sent various communications seeking the status of his application but the same had not elicited any response. The petitioner had to take recourse to the RTI Act to obtain information regarding rejection of his application. This too was not responded to satisfactorily, and the petitioner had to appeal to the Central Information Commission to redress his grievance in this regard. As noticed above, CSOI has been equally lackadaisical in conducting the case in this Court as well.
22. In view of the above, the petition is allowed with costs quantified at ₹25,000/-. The CSOI shall consider the petitioner's application for membership to CSOI. The CSOI shall also pay the costs as awarded to the petitioner within a period of two weeks from today. All pending applications stand disposed of."
5. It is stated that the order of this Court has not been complied with.
6. It is submitted by the learned counsels for the Respondents that the order dated 14.02.2019 was challenged by the CSIO by filing an appeal, being LPA No.383/2019. It is stated that the Division Bench of this Court vide order dated 06.04.2022 has disposed of LPA No.383/2019 by giving the following directions:
"9. Given the aforesaid position, we dispose of the above-captioned appeal with a direction to the CSOI to consider the application of respondent no.1, as directed by the learned single judge.
9.1 A decision in that behalf will be taken, within eight weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment.
9.2. While taking a decision, the CSOI will deal with all those cases (which have been referred to by Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed By:HARIOM SINGH KIRMOLIYA CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019 Page 2 of 3 Signing Date:20.05.2022 12:17:41 respondent no.1) in the list appended on page 186 of the case file, and marked, as indicated above, as Annexure A/3.
9.2(a) The CSOI will carefully scrutinize those cases, if the position taken by respondent no.1 is correct, and it would give reasons as to why those persons were granted membership. To our minds, consideration of respondent no.1's application, as directed by the learned Single Judge, can have no other meaning.
9.3. Accordingly, a speaking order will be passed by CSOI and a copy of the same will be served upon respondent no.1. In case, respondent no. 1 is aggrieved by the decision taken by the CSOI, it will have the liberty to take recourse to an appropriate remedy, as per law."
7. In view of the above, order dated 14.02.2019 has been merged with the order dated 06.04.2022, and the CSIO has been directed to consider the application of the Petitioner herein on its own merits.
8. In view of the order dated 06.04.2022 passed by this Court in LPA No.3831/2019, the instant contempt petition is disposed of, along with all the pending application(s), if any.
9. Needless to state that in case the order dated 06.04.2022 is not complied with by the Respondents, it is always open to the Petitioner to file a fresh contempt petition.
10. The date already fixed in the matter, i.e. 23.01.2023, stands cancelled.
SUBRAMONIUM PRASAD, J MAY 19, 2022/Rahul Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed By:HARIOM SINGH KIRMOLIYA CONT.CAS(C) 537/2019 Page 3 of 3 Signing Date:20.05.2022 12:17:41