State Bureau, Ranchi. The division bench of Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Rajesh Shankar has given an important decision, taking a tough stance on the functioning of the state government. The court has said that the government and its officials are filing baseless and malicious petitions to obstruct the judicial process.
The division bench rejected the review petition filed by the state government, terming it as false and baseless and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the concerned officials, which they will have to pay from their own pockets.
The High Court made a strong comment and said that since government officials do not bear the litigation expenses from their own pocket, they do not hesitate in filing baseless and unnecessary petitions. The court termed it a waste of public money and said the time has come to curb this trend.
This matter is related to RK Construction Private Limited. The court has clarified in its order that in its order passed on August 25, 2025, no comment was made on the merits of the case, but under the binding instructions of the Supreme Court, the court was asked to take a decision within the stipulated time frame. Despite this, the filing of review petition by the State Government only shows the intention to stop the execution proceedings.
Describing the state as the stronger plaintiff and the company as the weaker party, the High Court said that it is the duty of the state to respect honest claims and not to harass citizens through technical gimmicks. The court said that this unnecessary litigation by the officials is leading to blatant wastage of public money.
Giving a stern warning, the Division Bench directed that from now on, appeals, revision or Article 227 petitions filed by the State will be accepted only if they are accompanied by a certificate of compliance with the Jharkhand State Litigation Policy.
Rejecting the review petition, the court has ordered to deposit the fine amount in Jharkhand State Legal Services Authority (Jhalsa) within four weeks. The next hearing of the case will be on January 20.