Disputes Between Two Limbs Of Govt Should Not Be Fought In Court At The Expense Of Public Exchequer: J&K&L High Court

"It would be desirable to relegate the parties to the Administrative Dispute Resolution Mechanism provided under the Office Memo" , the court observed.

The observations were made by Justice Sanjeev Kumar while hearing a plea in terms of which the Hotel Corporation of India had challenged the notice for termination of the lease and subsequent eviction notice issued by the Estates Officer concerned.

The petitioner Corporation also challenged the order passed by the Appellate Authority under the J&K Public Premises (Eviction of unauthorized Occupants) Act, 1988 dismissing its appeal against the eviction notice.

Justice Kumar observed that the Hotel Corporation of India Ltd. is an autonomous body/Public Sector Undertaking subject to ultimate administrative control of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India and the other party to the litigation is the Government of UT of Jammu and Kashmir which under the Constitution of India is administered by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.

"The dispute raised in this petition is, thus, a dispute between an Autonomous Body (the petitioner-Corporation) fully owned, controlled and administered by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir which is administered by the President of India through Lieutenant Governor who is answerable to the President through the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India", the court stated.

Deprecating the tendency of various Government Departments and the Public Sector Undertaking entering into litigation inter se and consuming public time and public exchequer, the court observed that such disputes between the two limbs of Government of India should not be brought to the Court.

Revealing its mind to address the controversy, the bench observed that the termination of lease and issuance of eviction notice by the Government of Jammu is resisted by the petitioner corporation and many issues of law and fact were debated before me in the matter. However, instead of going into all these issues and having regard to the fact that the dispute is between two limbs of Government of India, it would be desirable to relegate the parties to the Administrative Dispute Resolution Mechanism provided under the Office Memo issued by the Law Ministry for settlement of disputes other than relating to taxation.

Accordingly the bench disposed off the plea by directing the Government of India through its Cabinet Secretary to constitute a Committee comprising of (i) Secretary to the Government Ministry of Civil Aviation, (ii) Secretary to the Government, Department of Home Affairs, and (iii) Secretary, Department of Legal Affairs to adjudicate the dispute in question that has arisen between the petitioner-Corporation and the Government of UT of Jammu and Kashmir.

The court further directed that in case any of the parties is aggrieved by the decision of the Committee aforesaid, it shall be open to it to file an appeal before the Cabinet Secretary whose decision, on the subject, shall be final and binding on both the parties.

"Should the Committee at its level fail to resolve the dispute between the parties for any reason whatsoever, the matter shall be referred to the Cabinet Secretary whose decision shall be final and binding on all the concerned", the bench added while giving Cabinet Secretary four weeks time to constitute a Committee from the date of judgment under an intimation to the disputing parties.

Case Title : Hotel Corporation of India Ltd Vs UT of J&K & Ors.

Citation : 2022 LiveLaw (JKL) 215

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