Supreme Court to Establish Guidelines on Summoning Government Officials
In a pivotal move, the Supreme Court announced its intention to establish comprehensive guidelines concerning the appearance of government officials in court, especially in cases involving the government.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!This decision was voiced during a hearing that centered around an order from the Allahabad High Court. This order had resulted in the detention of the Special Secretary (Finance) and Secretary (Finance) of the Uttar Pradesh government due to their failure to comply with directives to provide facilities for retired judges. Reacting to this, the Supreme Court had swiftly directed the immediate release of these officers.
Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta, in his address to the court, emphasized the necessity of such guidelines, stating,
“We ask the court to frame some guidelines. We have proposed an SOP.”
He brought to light a draft Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) that the Centre had prepared for this very purpose. Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, after perusing the draft SOP, made a pointed remark,
“We have seen the SOP. Some part of the SOP is more on how judicial review should be exercised.”
The draft SOP, in its detailed suggestions, proposed that before initiating contempt proceedings, higher courts should consider pleas for review on behalf of the government, especially if certain legal points were overlooked during adjudication. Addressing this, the Solicitor General stated,
“Obviously this is the discretion of every court. Review means the challenge. What they mean is appeal or other proceedings before the higher court…which cannot be.”
The SOP also emphasized that government officials should only be required to appear in court in ‘exceptional cases’. If summoned, they should be given advanced notice and the option to appear virtually. It further advised courts to avoid commenting on an official’s attire or background. Referring to this, Mehta remarked,
“There are some orders where only the Chief Secretary is summoned. It’s not a matter of ego but the joint secretary who is handling the matter can also come. It is always more effective if the person dealing with the file comes. There are some genuine suggestions here (in the draft SOP).”
Concluding the hearing, the bench, keen on bringing clarity to the matter, stated,
“We will lay down some guidelines for summoning of government officers. There must be bifurcation of matters pending and the ones in which adjudication is complete. For pending (matters), summoning officers is not needed but once adjudication is complete then contempt steps in.”
This development underscores the Supreme Court’s commitment to streamlining the judicial process and ensuring that government officials are not unduly burdened by court appearances.
