Indian Association For The Cultivation Of Science (IACS) Is A 'State' U/Article 12 : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court held that the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science [IACS] is a "State” within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India.

The bench of Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Hrishikesh Roy set aside a Calcutta High Court judgment that had held otherwise while dismissing a writ petition filed against IACS.

In this case, the writ petitioners, who are the academic staff of the IACS had raised various issues with respect to their service conditions. The Single Bench of the High Court, noticing the decision of the Division Bench in Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur & Ors. v. Ashoke Kumar Roy : (1992) 1 CLJ 319, dismissed the writ petitions as not maintainable. The Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the intra court appeals filed against this order.

Before the Apex Court, the appellants pointed out that (1) majority of members of the IACS are appointed with prior approval of the Government; financial assistance by the Government to IACS goes beyond 90% (2) IACS is substantially funded by the Central Government through the Department of Science and Technology; (3) Government has deep and pervasive control over IACS; (4) IACS is a Deemed Research University with primary function to foster high quality research in frontier disciplines of basic science. Relying on Pradeep Kumar Biswas v. Indian Institute of Chemical Biology: (2002) 5 SCC 111, it was contended that IACS is “the State” within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India as it is financially, functionally and administratively dominated by, and is under the control of, the Government.

Accepting these contentions, the bench, while allowing the appeal, observed:

"We need not elaborate on the shortcomings in the views of the Division Bench of the High Court, whether in the earlier decision in Ashoke Kumar Roy (supra) or in the order impugned because, in our view, there is hardly any scope for reaching to any other conclusion but the one in favour of upholding the submission that IACS answers to the description of “the State” within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India, for it being financially, functionally and administratively under the control of the Government of India."

Case details

Pushan Majumdar vs Union of India |  2023 LiveLaw (SC) 115 | CA 369-378 OF 2023 | 16 Jan 2023 | Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Hrishikesh Roy

For Petitioner(s) Mr. Prashant Bhushan, AOR Ms. Alice Raj, Adv. Ms. Suroor Mander, Adv. Mr. Rahul Gupta, Adv.

For Respondent(s) Mr. Sanjay Jain, A.S.G. Mr. Gurmeet Singh Makker, AOR Mr. Rupesh Kumar, Adv. Mr. S.A. Haseeb, Adv. Mr. Padmesh Mishra, Adv. Mr. Arkaj Kumar, Adv. Ms. Meena Devi, Adv. Mr. Prasenjit Sarkar, Adv. Mr. Piyush Beriwal, Adv. Ms. Tanya Aggarwal, Adv. Mr. Yatin Grover, Adv. Mr. Kumarjit Das, Adv. Mr. Parminder Singh Bhullar, AOR

Headnote

Constitution of India, 1950 ; Article 12 -Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) answers to the description of “the State” within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India, for it being financially, functionally and administratively under the control of the Government of India. 

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