Today, On 19th February, The Delhi High Court dismissed a review petition filed by former West Bengal Chief Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay. The petition had challenged the court’s 2022 decision upholding the CAT Chairman’s order to transfer his case from Kolkata Bench to Delhi.
The Delhi High Court dismissed a review petition from former West Bengal Chief Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay, which challenged the court’s 2022 decision that supported the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Chairman’s order to transfer his case from the Kolkata Bench to Delhi.
A Division Bench consisting of Justices C Hari Shankar and Jyoti Singh ruled the plea lacked merit.
The West Bengal and Central governments had been embroiled in a conflict over Bandyopadhyay following a political controversy related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s review meeting on Cyclone Yaas in 2021.
Allegations were made that Bandyopadhyay arrived late to the meeting, prompting the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to initiate proceedings against him. Subsequently, the Centre established a panel to investigate the charges.
Bandyopadhyay contested this action before the Kolkata Bench of the CAT, but before the case could be heard, the CAT Chairman transferred it to Delhi.
He challenged the CAT Chairman’s decision in the Calcutta High Court, which initially overturned it. However, after the Centre appealed, the Supreme Court reversed the Calcutta High Court’s ruling.
The Supreme Court determined that any decision made by the CAT in Delhi, including those under Section 25 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, could only be reviewed “before a Division Bench of a High Court within whose jurisdiction the tribunal concerned falls.”
Bandyopadhyay subsequently approached the Delhi High Court to contest the case transfer. His petition claimed that the order from the Principal Bench of the CAT violated principles of natural justice, equity, and fair play, as he was not afforded an opportunity to submit his written objections to the Centre’s transfer petition, which was accepted on its first listing day.
His initial plea was dismissed by a Bench comprising then Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh on March 7, 2022.
Following this, Bandyopadhyay filed a review petition challenging the decision. He contended that one reason for his review was the denial of a passover, despite multiple requests from junior counsel representing Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, to allow Singhvi to address the court.
In April 2022, Justices Rajiv Shakdher (now retired) and Jyoti Singh issued a notice regarding the review petition.
In its response, the Centre stated that while the right to a court hearing is important, there is no right to be heard specifically through a senior counsel. It noted that there is no rule mandating a passover on the first call, nor is it a common practice for the Delhi High Court to grant such requests.
The Centre argued that accepting this as grounds for review would overwhelm courts with applications seeking rehearings solely based on a request for representation by a Senior Advocate.
Bandyopadhyay was represented by Senior Advocate AK Behera, along with advocates Kunal Vajani, Kunal Mimani, Kartikey Bhatt, and Prashant Alai.
The Central government was represented by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Vikramjeet Banerjee, Central Government Standing Counsel (CGSC) Nidhi Raman, along with advocates Akash Mishra, Arnav Mittal, Suraj, Kartik Dey, and Mayank Sansanwal.