ORDER :

I.A. No. 67822/2020 - Application for condonation of delay

1. The State of Madhya Pradesh continues to do the same thing again and again and the conduct seems to be incorrigible. The Special Leave Petition has been filed after a delay of 588 days. We had an occasion to deal with such inordinately delayed filing of the appeal by the State of Madhya Pradesh in SLP (C) D. No. 9217/2020, State of Madhya Pradesh and Others vs. Bheru Lal in terms of our order dated 15th October, 2020.

2. We have penned down a detailed order in that case and we see no purpose in repeating the same reasoning again except to record what are stated to be the facts on which the delay is sought to be condoned. On 05.01.2019, it is stated that the Government advocate was approached in respect of the judgment delivered on 13.11.2018 and the Law Department permitted filing of the SLP against the impugned order on 26.5.2020. Thus, the Law Department took almost about 17 months’ time to decide whether the SLP had to be filed or not. What greater certificate of incompetence would there be for the legal Department.

3. We consider it appropriate to direct the Chief Secretary of the State of Madhya Pradesh to look