Patna High Court Weekly Round-Up: August 21 To August 27, 2023

Reshma Prasad vs. State of Bihar and Others 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 94

Veterans Forum for Transparency in Public vs The State of Bihar and Others 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 95

M/s Aastha Enterprises vs The State of Bihar and Another 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 96

Nisha Gupta vs. Uday Chand Gupta 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 97

Judgements/Orders This Week

'Transgender Not A Caste Identity, Every Individual Should Be Permitted Self Determination': Patna High Court

Case Title: Reshma Prasad vs. State of Bihar and Others

Case Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 94

"Transgender is not a caste identity and every individual, including those not conforming to the male/female gender classification, should be permitted self determination," the Patna High Court has held. The division bench of Chief Justice K. Vinod Chandran and Justice Partha Sarthy added that the Bihar government has erred in including transgender persons under the caste enumeration for its Caste Survey of 2022.

Politician Not Disabled From Being Appointed As State Food Commission Chairman: Patna High Court

Case Title: Veterans Forum for Transparency in Public vs The State of Bihar and Others

Case Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 95

While observing that there can be no disability found in a politician for appointment to the post of a Chairperson of Food Commission, the Patna High Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) contesting the appointment of Vidyanand Vikal as the Chairman of the Bihar State Food Commission.

The PIL was filed by the Veterans Forum for Transparency in Public Life, which sought to challenge Vikal's appointment on the grounds of his political background and alleged lack of expertise in matters concerning food and nutrition.

‘Purchasing Dealer Cannot, Without Credit In His Account, Claim Input Tax Credit If Selling Dealer Fails To Comply With The Statutory Requirement': Patna High Court

Case Title: M/s Aastha Enterprises vs The State of Bihar and Another

Case Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 96

The Patna High Court recently ruled that Input Tax Credit (ITC) should be regarded as a benefit or concession rather than an inherent right granted to taxpayers within the framework of the law. The court's decision emphasized that the availability of ITC to a purchasing dealer is contingent not only upon the seller's tax collection but also on the seller's proper remittance of the collected tax to the government. In this context, the onus of proving that the tax collected by the seller has indeed been paid to the government rests with the taxpayer seeking the credit.

'No Concern For Wife': Patna High Court Revokes Divorce Granted To Man Who Left House And Started Living At RSS Office

Case Title - Nisha Gupta vs. Uday Chand Gupta

Case Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Pat) 97

On Friday, the Patna High Court set aside a judgment of the family court granting a divorce decree in favour of the Husband as it noted that he had failed to prove the ground of cruelty purportedly committed by his wife against him.

The Court added that in fact, cruelty had been committed against the wife as the husband had left his house and started residing in the office of RSS. In its 47-page judgment, the bench of Justice PB Bajanthri and Justice Jitendra Kumar found that no cruelty had been committed by the Wife towards the Husband. The Court also opined that it appeared that the husband did not have any concern for his wife.

Other Development

Supreme Court Collegium Recommends Transfer Of Justice Nani Tagia To Patna High Court, Declines Request For Alternate Posting

On Thursday, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended the transfer of Justice Nani Tagia from the Gauhati High Court to the Patna High Court. The Collegium consisted of Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Justice B R Gavai and Justice Surya Kant.