This Article is From Nov 12, 2018

Case Dismissed? Government's Top Law Officer Takes On Chief Justice, Wins

KK Venugopal was representing the Rajasthan government in case involving the payment of interest in case of delay in depositing entry tax by a company.

Case Dismissed? Government's Top Law Officer Takes On Chief Justice, Wins

KK Venugopal was furious and reacted strongly to the dismissal of the petition.

Highlights

  • Attorney General's plea on behalf of Rajasthan dismissed by Chief Justice
  • Attorney General protested the move, said it was about a state's revenue
  • Chief Justice agreed to consider the petition after pending cases
New Delhi:

The government's top law officer, KK Venugopal, on Monday, was not pleased when Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi dismissed his petition even before he could present his case. The argument, instead, took place with the judge. Result - Chief Justice Gogoi, who till date has never reversed his decisions, agreed to hear the matter once the pending cases are decided.

Mr Venugopal was representing the Rajasthan government in case involving the payment of interest in case of delay in depositing entry tax by a company. But before he could begin, a bench led by the Chief Justice Bench said the case was "dismissed".

The Attorney General was furious. "I cannot think of any Supreme Court Bench dismissing a case without hearing the sides. Many clients come from faraway parts of the country, and the Chief Justice says dismissed?" he said.

"You cannot dismiss the petition. It is related to revenue of a state. Why the CJI bench is hesitating to issue notice? I do not think the Chief Justice of India has read the petition," Mr Venugopal added.

"Do not presume we didn't see the file... We might have misread it but we read it," the Chief Justice retorted.

Last month, the court also refused to give an early hearing to the title suit in the Ayodhya case.

"We have our own priorities," Chief Justice Gogoi had said, rejecting the Uttar Pradesh government's argument that the matter, unresolved for a Century, should be taken up on priority.

Another petition, asking the court to rethink its decision on the case, got turned down earlier on Monday.

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