SC: Pendency of Application for Review Cannot be Taken as Valid Ground for Non-Compliance with Court’s Directions

Supreme Court Law Insider

Sarthak Nigam

Published on: 12 November 2022 at 16:45 IST

The Supreme Court observed while dealing with the Contempt Petition that merely because the stay application is pending in review petition cannot be a ground to not comply with the directions issued by this Court.

The bench of Justices MR Shah and MM Sundresh observed that the pendency of a writ and appeal petition along with stay can’t be equated with pendency of the review petition.

The Court in a judgment [Reliance Industries Ltd vs Securities and Exchange Board of India 2022 (SC)] delivered in August, RIL has been granted access to certain document used by SEBI to file a criminal complaint against it this year. A quasi-judicial body, SEBI has a constitutional mandate to act fairly, in accordance with the law, in conducting proceedings and initiating any actions against the parties.

Basically, the regulator’s role is to deal with complaints in a fair manner, not to circumvent the rule of law to get successful convictions. They have a substantive duty to show fairness in public cooperation and deference. 

SEBI was instructed to provide a copy of the documents, but the same has not been provided until now, according to Senior Advocate Harish Salve, who represented the RIL who filed the contempt petition.

Senior Advocate KK Venugopal, representing SEBI, submitted before the court that it still possesses copies of the documents, requested the court not to pass further order as a review petition preferred by it is pending. He placed reliance on the decisions in Modern Food Industries (India) Ltd. vs. Sachidanand Dass 1995 as well as in State of J and K vs. Mohd. Yaqoob Khan (1992).

A contempt proceeding was initiated against an ex-parte order passes by the learned single judge against a pending writ petition in Mohd. Yaqoob khan (supra). Therefore, it was observed that when the stay application is yet to be heard and decided and disposed of, the contempt proceedings cannot be initiated. The bench while issuing notice, noted that:

“The pendency of an appeal and/or writ petition along with stay cannot be equated with pendency of the review petition. There is a final decision by this Court in an appeal. Merely because the stay application is pending in review petition cannot be a ground to grant stay by the respondent on its own and not to comply with the directions issued by this Court.”

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