Natural Justice Principles Violated As Sufficient Time To Produce Acquittal Orders Not Provided: MP High Court Quashes Externment Order

The Madhya Pradesh High Court recently quashed an externment order passed against a man by holding that natural justice principles were violated as the man wasn't given sufficient time to produce the orders of acquittal in the cases in which he was already acquitted.

The Bench of Justice Subodh Abhyankar also noted that if the man had been given an opportunity to produce the copies of acquittal orders passed in his favor, then the result of the outcome could have been different.

The case in brief

Essentially, an externment order was passed against one Pushpendra Bhadoriya by Collector/District Magistrate, Indore externing him from the limits of District Indore as also the adjoining Districts.

The order was passed on a recommendation made by the Superintendent of Police, West Zone, Indore on the ground that the petitioner is involved in various criminal activities since 1998, which has led to fear in the minds of the public and the public at large is also afraid to lodge any report against him.

When he was given a show-cause notice, the petitioner in his written submissions, sought time to file the orders of acquittal in the criminal cases, which have been registered against him as he could not obtain the certified copies in time owing to summer vacation as also the Covid-19 restrictions.

However, without giving him sufficient time, the externment order was passed against and challenging the same, the petitioner moved to the High Court alleging that he had been deprived of proper hearing by the respondent and principles of natural justice have been violated.

Court's observations

At the outset, the Court noted that the impugned externment order revealed that the District Magistrate had made it a ground that since the petitioner had not filed the orders of acquittal passed in his favour, therefore, the cases enumerated by the S.P. in his recommendation were relied upon.

However, the Court did note that in fact the petitioner wasn't given sufficient time to produce the acquittal orders passed in his favour exonerating him from some of the criminal cases lodged against him.

This Court also found that before passing the impugned order, the District Magistrate had not recorded the statement of any person from the area, who could say that he is afraid to go to the police station only on account of the terror or influence exercised by the petitioner.

Agaisnt this backdrop, the Court quashed the externment order dated September 17, 2021, by holding that even if the petitioner had not availed the remedy of appeal (against the externment order), his petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India was maintainable.

The petitioner was represented by Advocate Ravindra Singh Chhabra assisted by Advocates Mudit Maheshwari, Raghuvir Singh (Darbar), Kanishka Gupta, Aman Arora and Shreyansh Jain.

Case title - Raju @ Pushpendra Bhadoriya v. Collector/District Magistrate, Indore & Ors.

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