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IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI
SUBBA REDDY SATTI, J.
V. Manohar and 35 others. – Appellants
Versus
The State of Andhra Pradesh and others – Respondents
Writ Petition No.19144 of 2024
Decided on : 30-08-2024
Natural Justice - Show Cause Notice - Article 14, 16, 311 - The court emphasized the necessity of providing adequate grounds and materials in a show cause notice to uphold the principles of natural justice, influencing its decision to allow the petitioners to respond appropriately.
Fact of the Case:
The petitioners challenged show-cause notices issued by the Managing Director of a society, claiming their appointments were regularized and the notices were illegal and arbitrary, lacking necessary documentation for a proper response.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the show-cause notices did not provide sufficient grounds or materials for the petitioners to respond adequately, violating principles of natural justice, but also noted that the writ petition was not maintainable at this stage.
Issues: Whether the show-cause notices issued to the petitioners were illegal and violated principles of natural justice.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that a show-cause notice must specify grounds for action and provide adequate material for the noticee to respond, failing which it violates natural justice.
Result: The writ petition was disposed of with directions for the petitioners to request necessary documents and submit their explanations.
ORDER:
The writ petition is filed seeking the following relief:
2. Heard Sri S.V.S.S.Siva Ram, learned counsel for the petitioners, and learned Assistant Government Pleader for Services appearing for respondents 1 to 3.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that the petitioners were initially appointed temporarily (voucher basis) on 14.12.2020 in the 4th respondent Society. Petitioners? services were regularized by proceedings No.M.D/KRECS/KPM/JAO-Adm/F.No.320/D.No.1111/23, dated 15.12.2023 (Ex.P.3). (The Managing Director issued proceedings (Ex.P.2) appointed the petitioners as Assistant Helpers on Consolidation Pay of Rs.21,880/-. The petitioners have been discharging their duties.
4. Be that as it may, show-cause notices vide Roc.No.324/2024 dated 09.08.2024 were issued to all the petitioners calling upon the petitioners to submit an explanation within 15 days. Assailing the said show-cause notice, the above writ petition is filed.
5. Learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that once the petitioners? were regularized by the Managing Director as per the By-laws of the Society, the show-cause notice issued by the Managing Director after a change of Government, per se, is illegal and arbitrary and without jurisdiction. Learned counsel submitted that in the show-cause notice, the 4th reference is the Joint Collector, Chittoor/ Official Person In-charge note order dated 07.08.2024, has not been furnished to the petitioners to enable them to submit the explanation. Learned counsel also submitted that the efforts made by the petitioners to secure the proceedings in references 2, 3, and 4 went futile. He submitted that to submit a proper explanation to the show-cause notice, those documents are necessary. He also submitted that the authority premeditated the issue thus the show cause notices are liable to be set aside. He also would submit that submitting the explanation to the show cause notices is a futile exercise because of premeditation by the authority. Learned counsel placed reliance upon the judgment in Shivcharan Lalchand Bhatiya vs. Sejal K.Mevada (Special Civil Application No.12250 of 2017 dated 05.04.2018).
6. Learned Assistant Government pleader would submit that the writ petition against the show cause notice is not maintainable. He also would submit that if the petitioners require any documents, they should have made an appropriate application. He also would submit that a perusal of the show cause notices does not indicate any premeditation and thus prayed to dismiss the writ petition.
7. The point for consideration is:
8. A show cause notice has the solemn purpose of informing the person about the material for which a response is being sought concerning a case, which may constitute a breach, for which he is being directed to submit an explanation. The very purpose of a show cause notice is to enable the recipient to raise objections,
A show-cause notice must provide clear grounds and relevant materials to ensure compliance with natural justice principles.
An employee must be provided with relevant documents to ensure a fair opportunity to respond to allegations in a show cause notice, upholding principles of natural justice.
An employee must be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to a show cause notice, including access to relevant documents, to uphold principles of natural justice.
The main legal point established in the judgment is the importance of fairness in administrative actions, the obligation to act fairly and reasonably, and the application of the principles of natural....
A show-cause notice does not constitute an infringement of rights, and a writ petition against it is typically premature unless jurisdictional issues are present.
The main legal point established in the judgment is the importance of adhering to the principles of natural justice in administrative actions, particularly in employment disputes.
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