Duty Bound To Implement Court Orders: Bombay HC Imposes 25K Cost Over Police's Failure In Returning Passport Despite Court Order

The Bombay High Court on Monday while pulling up the Mumbai Police for not returning the passport of a man, despite a clear order by a Sessions court, said the Police is duty bound to implement an order passed by any court.

A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Shivkumar Dige also imposed costs of Rs 25,000 on the State for the failure of the officers at Mumbai's plush Cuffe Parade Police Station, to return the passport of one Jayanth Kumar.

"It has been more than a year that the order to return the passport has been passed by the Sessions Court. Today, when consulted, neither the additional public prosecutor nor the officer of the Cuffe Parade Police Station, had any answer for non-compliance of the said order. When an order is passed by a court the police is duty bound to implement the same unless the order is challenged. For not returning the passport and for high-handedness of the police, considering that there is a delay of more than a year in handing over the passport, we deem it appropriate to impose costs of Rs 25,000 on the State," the bench recorded in its order.

The judges, granted 4 weeks time to the State to pay the said costs to Kumar and to recover the said amount from the concerned office of the Cuffe Parade Police Station.

The bench was hearing a petition filed by Kumar, who highlighted the fact that despite a clear order by a Sessions court in Mumbai, to forthwith return his passport, the officers at the Cuffe Parade Police Station failed in doing so. He even highlighted the fact that he had made several requests to the concerned officers, however, the order of the Sessions court was not obeyed. 

Notably, Kumar was booked in a case under the Information and Technology (IT) Act, way back in July 2018 at the time when he was working with a firm. The case was actually lodged against the company, however, since Kumar was the Vice President there, he too was named. He got anticipatory bail from the Sessions Court in Mumbai and pursuant to the directions in the order passed in March 2021, he surrendered his passport.

Now, as the chargesheet is filed in the case, Kumar has initiated separate proceedings fro quashing his name from the case. He also moved the Sessions Court seeking back his passport. And on November 8, 2023, the Sessions Court ordered the Cuffe Parade Police Station to forthwith return the passport. 

While ordering the police to return the passport, the High Court orally observed that the citizens cannot be treated like this and that the police must follow discipline and ensure that the court's orders are adhered to and implemented. 

Case Title: Jayanth Kumar vs State of Maharashtra (Writ Petition (ST) 25010 of 2024)

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Bom) 626