New Delhi (ILNS): The High Court of Kerala dismissed a plea of quo warranto (to know by what authority) challenging the appointment of G. Sasidharan (Retired High Court judge) as the Chairman of the Kerala State Commission for Backward Classes.
The petition filed by an activist named S Subramaniam challenged the post of the retired judge on the pretext that he had earlier served as Upa LokAyukta and hence is disqualified from being appointed to the post of Chairman of the Kerala State Commission for Backward Classes as per Section 5(3) of Kerala Lok Ayukta Act, 1999 which provides that, “on ceasing to hold office, the Lok Ayukta or an Upa-Lok Ayukta shall not be eligible for further employment to any office of profit under the Government or in any authority, corporation, company society or university referred to in item (vii) of clause (o) of Section 2”.
The bench comprising Chief Justice S. Manikumar and Justice Shaji P. Chaly, however, rejected the petitioners contention and observed: “Merely because, sub-section (3) of Section 3 in the Kerala State Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993, provides for removal of persons from the Office of Members, for the reasons stated thereunder, that by itself cannot be said that the Government have a control over the Backward Class Commission.”
The bench further observed: “Section 9 also states that the advice of the Commission shall ordinarily be binding upon the Government. Thus, when the advice of the Commission is binding on the Government, the Commission cannot be said to be under the control of the Government.”
Read the order here;
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