Legal positions laid by Courts binding on all: HC

Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Apr 23: High Court today held that it is well settled that generally legal positions laid down by the Court would be binding on all concerned even though some of them have not been made parties nor were served nor any notice of such proceedings given.
Justice MK Hanjura said, it is luculent that a judicial decorum and discipline is paramount and, therefore, a coordinate Bench has to respect the judgments and orders passed by another coordinate Bench and a pronouncement of law by a Division Bench of the Court is binding on a Division Bench of the same or a single bench.
Court disposed of the petition by providing that whatever has been observed and held by the Single Bench in other petitions as also by the Division Bench in its appeals, said the same is also applicable to the present case and the respondents shall proceed ahead in the matter in accordance with the decision rendered by the Division Bench of this Court.
Contention of some of the counsels appearing on behalf of the parties, that as some of them were not party in the earlier writ petitions/appeals, the judgment(s) rendered therein were not binding on them, Court said, is specious and phoney.
Court recorded that the subject-matter of instant writ petition has been dealt with and put at rest not only by the Single Judge in a bunch of writ petitions but also by the Division Bench in two appeals.
Court said, it has been unequivocally made clear that the State Public Service Commission shall consider the proposal received from the respondents for filling up the posts of the Deputy Controller, Drugs and Food Control Organisation, on the substantive basis.
And once the posts of the Deputy Controllers are filled up on the regular basis, shall consider the eligible Deputy Drugs Controllers for filling up the post of Controller, Drugs and Food Control Organisation; the respondents shall consider all the incharge Drugs Deputy Controllers in accordance with the rules, regulations, Government instructions, issued in this behalf, for placement of one of them as Incharge Controller, Drugs and Food Control Organisation till the State Government on the recommendation of the Public Service Commission are taken for filling up of the posts of the Deputy Controllers on the substantive basis.
“From the above discussion, the controversy constricts to the application of the judgement(s) passed by the learned Single Bench and the Division Bench, and the legal position laid down there from having binding impact on all concerned, including the petitioner and respondents herein. To better understand, it would be advantageous to have an exploration of the judicial pronouncements qua the application and bindingness of the settled law as a result of judicial pronouncement of the Court”, read the judgment.
Justice Hanjura further added that it is commonly known that the most decisions of the courts are of significance not merely because they constitute an adjudication on the rights of the parties and resolve the dispute between them, but also because in doing so they embody a declaration of law operating as a binding principle in the future cases.
Court added that the legal compulsions cannot be limited by the existing legal propositions, because there will always be, beyond the frontiers of the existing law, new areas inviting the judicial scrutiny and the judicial choice-making, which could well affect the validity of the existing legal dogma.
In a developing society, Court said, such as India, the law does not assume its true function when it follows a groove chased amidst a context, which has long since crumbled.

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