States Reorganisation Act, 1956

The appellants, Ahmed Hussain Khan and S. Gopalan, were senior civil servants who had joined the Hyderabad State service before its merger with India and later transferred to Andhra Pradesh. Their pension was governed by Rule 299(b) of the Hyderabad Civil Services Rules, which originally stipulated a maximum pension of…

S.M. Yunus, a former civil servant of the erstwhile State of Hyderabad who retired in 1956, claimed a pension of Rs 1,000 per month in Indian currency, arguing that his right had vested at retirement. The Andhra Pradesh Government had, by a 1971 notification, retrospectively reduced the maximum pension to Rs 857.15 per…

The appellants, Mathadhipatis of several Mutts in South Kanara, challenged notices demanding contributions under the Madras Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act, 1951 after the district was transferred to Mysore (Karnataka) by the States Reorganisation Act, 1956. They argued that the Mysore Government's notifi…

The petitioner, Rajeev Mankotia, filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking protection of the Viceregal Lodge in Shimla as an ancient monument of national importance, opposing the Union Government's plan to convert it into a tourist hotel. The Court examined the definition of "ancient monument" and the duties of th…

The Supreme Court examined a writ petition filed by the Mullaperiyar Environmental Protection Forum seeking to set aside the 1886 lease agreement and related provisions, and to prevent the raising of the Mullaperiyar Dam water level beyond 136 ft. The Court held that Section 108 of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, …

The Supreme Court examined the constitutionality of clause (b) of Section 32 of the Andhra Pradesh Buildings (Lease, Rent and Eviction) Control Act, 1960, which exempted all buildings constructed on or after 26 August 1957 from the Act's rent‑control provisions. Petitioners argued that after more than two decades the e…

The Customs and Central Excise Department created a separate Data Entry Operator cadre to implement computerisation, later merging it back with the original ministerial cadre under the TA Rules, 2003 and STA Rules, 2003. This merger altered the inter‑se seniority of officers, disadvantaging those who remained in the mi…

The plaintiff, a Goan shipping company, sued the owners of the foreign vessel M.V. Elisabeth for conversion of cargo after the ship left Marmagao without the required bills of lading and delivered the goods abroad against the plaintiff's instructions. The Andhra Pradesh High Court arrested the vessel in Vishakhapatnam …

The State of Maharashtra sought to establish a permanent bench of the Bombay High Court at Aurangabad, but pending central approval, the Chief Justice issued an order under s.51(3) of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, appointing Aurangabad as a place where Judges and Division Courts may also sit. The High Court stru…

The appellants challenged a decision that land under systematic teak plantation was classified as private forest under the Kerala Private Forests (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971. They argued that clause (c) of Section 2(2)(1)(c) exempts lands principally cultivated with any agricultural crop, and that teak plantatio…

The Supreme Court examined whether Section 23 of the Travancore‑Cochin High Court Act, which provides that a Chief Justice must refer a matter to a third judge when two judges of a division bench disagree, survives the repealing provision of Section 9 of the Kerala High Court Act and whether it is a special provision t…

The appellants, owners of tea, rubber and cardamom estates in Kerala, sought exemption under Section 2(f)(1)(i)(B) of the Kerala Private Forests (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971 for lands used to grow fire‑wood trees for fuel in estate factories, smoke‑houses and for workers' domestic use. The Kerala High Court held …

The appellant, a granddaughter of a non‑redeeming co‑mortgagor, sued for partition and possession of her one‑half share of mortgaged property that had been fully redeemed by the father of the respondents between 1913‑1918. The trial court held the suit was not barred by limitation, but the High Court reversed, applying…

The Federation of Bar Associations in Karnataka filed a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution seeking a permanent bench of the Karnataka High Court in northern Karnataka, arguing that the long distance from Bangalore made access to justice costly and time‑consuming. The Chief Justice of the Karnataka High …

S.P. Dubey joined a private transport company in 1947 where the superannuation age was 60. The company was taken over by the Madhya Pradesh Government on 31 August 1955 with a notification assuring that existing staff would not be adversely affected in their terms of service. When the staff were transferred to the Madh…

The Supreme Court examined whether government servants in Karnataka who were promoted to higher posts during the period allowed for passing the Service and Kannada Language Examinations, but failed to pass those exams, could be reverted to their earlier posts. The Court held that Section 4 of the Karnataka Services Exa…

The Supreme Court examined the constitutionality of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara (Management) Act, 2014, which created a separate statutory body to manage Sikh gurdwaras in Haryana. The Court held that Section 72 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 and Sections 3 and 4 of the Inter‑State Corporation Act, 1957 are merel…

The petitioners sought specific performance of a contract for two cinema theatres in Calicut, but the trial court dismissed the suit. On appeal, a two‑judge Division Bench of the Kerala High Court delivered conflicting judgments and, without identifying any point of law difference, confirmed the trial court decree unde…

The Bombay High Court entertained four writ petitions filed by members of the Gowari community seeking declaration that they belong to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) ‘Gond Gowari’ and quashed the ST certificates issued to them. The High Court held that the tribe ‘Gond Gowari’ was extinct before 1911 and that the caste ‘Gowar…

Sudhakar Vithal Kumbhare, a resident of Madhya Pradesh belonging to the Halba tribe, was promoted to Assistant Engineer in the Maharashtra State Electricity Board under a reserved post. The Board later reverted him to Junior Engineer, arguing that he was not entitled to reservation benefits in Maharashtra. The Supreme …

The petitioners, diploma‑holding engineers appointed in the erstwhile Punjab Service, were promoted to Sub‑Divisional Officer in Class II and were eligible for promotion to Executive Engineer in Class I under the unamended Rule 6(b) of the Punjab Service of Engineers (Class I) Rules, 1964. The Haryana Government issued…

The widows of former Madras State government servants who retired before the 1956 reorganisation sought family pension under the Tamil Nadu Notification of 26 May 1979. The Tamil Nadu Government later issued a clarification (G.O. MS/63, 18 March 1982) that denied pension where the servant’s last posting was in a territ…

The Supreme Court examined a writ petition filed by Dr. Neeraj Chaubey challenging an advertisement for an Assistant Professor position that required seven years of experience instead of the statutory five years. The Division Bench of the Allahabad High Court, instead of listing the petition, issued directions concerni…

The Supreme Court adjudicated appeals against the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal's 2007 award allocating waters of the inter-State river Cauvery among Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Puducherry. The Court upheld the Tribunal's adoption of the principle of equitable apportionment as recognized in international rules…

The President, under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, established a permanent bench of the Rajasthan High Court at Jaipur and defined its territorial jurisdiction over eleven districts, while retaining a discretionary power to transfer cases to the principal seat at Jodhpur. The Acting Chief Justice later issued an…

The case concerned an ancient temple registered as a public trust under the Bombay Public Trust Act, 1950. After trustees terminated the services of two licensees who refused to vacate temple premises, the trustees filed suits for declaration of title and possession. Earlier suits were dismissed for lack of written con…

Amar Nath Bansal, originally a civilian clerk in the Jind State Civil Service (1943), later served in the merged state of PEPSU, then Punjab, and finally Haryana. The Jind Service Regulations of 1945 fixed the retirement age at 62, but after the formation of PEPSU the Raj Pramukh issued Ordinances No. 1 and No. 16 of 2…

Bhagat Ram Sharma, a former member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly and later a member of the Punjab State Public Service Commission (PSPC) who retired in 1959, sought pension benefits under Punjab PSPC Regulation 8(3) and under the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly (Allowances & Pension of Members) Act, 1971. Th…

The State of Kerala sought to have eucalyptus plantations in a tea estate declared private forest under Section 2(f) of the Kerala Private Forests (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971, so that the land would vest in the Government. The respondent, Nilgiri Tea Estates Ltd., argued that the trees were planted solely as fue…

The petitioners, senior civil servants allotted to the State of Mysore, obtained deemed promotion dates and related financial benefits from a final High Court mandamus. The State subsequently enacted the Karnataka State Civil Services (Regulation of Promotion, Pay and Pension) Act, 1973, whose Section 11(2) and certain…

The respondents, who were Functional Managers in the erstwhile State of Bihar, were recommended for promotion to General Manager/Deputy Director by a Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) on 15 February 1999. After the Bihar Reorganisation Act, 2000 bifurcated Bihar and created the State of Jharkhand, the respondents …

The appellants, claiming to be original residents of villages on the Bihar‑Uttar Pradesh border, challenged the validity of the Bihar and Uttar Pradesh (Alteration of Boundaries) Act, 1968, arguing that state boundaries were frozen as of 26‑January‑1950 and that the disputed lands were never transferred. The Supreme Co…

After the reorganisation of states under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, Assistant Sales Tax Officers (ASTOs) from the former States of Madhya Pradesh and Hyderabad were allocated to the new State of Bombay, where there were no comparable posts. The State Government issued several resolutions altering seniority an…

The petitioners were temporary employees of PEPSU Roadways who, by a government order dated 16‑10‑1956, were transferred and merged into the PEPSU Road Transport Corporation (PRTC). The corporation then operated under a Contributory Provident Fund (CPF) scheme and did not provide pension. After PRTC introduced a pensio…

The petitioners, representing a section of the Jain community, filed a writ petition seeking a direction to the Central Government to notify Jains as a minority under section 2(c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992, based on a recommendation of the National Commission. The High Court dismissed the peti…

C. Muddaiah, a former First Division Assistant of the Karnataka Housing Board, challenged the Board's seniority list and obtained a judgment from a Single Judge of the Karnataka High Court directing that his seniority be placed above respondents 2‑34 and that he be granted all consequential benefits. The Board appealed…

The case concerns the Mullaperiyar dam, a masonry dam built on the Periyar River in Kerala but owned and operated by Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu filed a suit under Article 131 of the Constitution seeking to enforce its rights under the 1886 lease agreement and to raise the dam’s full reservoir level (FRL) to 142 ft, as prev…

The appellant, A. Raja, contested and won the Devikulam Assembly seat, a constituency reserved for Scheduled Castes, by filing a nomination stating he belonged to the Hindu Parayan caste, supported by a caste certificate. The respondent challenged the election, alleging that the appellant's paternal grandparents migrat…

The Dean of Goa Medical College appealed against a Bombay High Court order that had held the ten‑year residency requirement in Rule III(1)(iii) of the Goa Rules 1998 to be merely directory, thereby allowing Dr. Sudhir Kumar Solanki to be considered for admission to a postgraduate medical course. The Supreme Court exami…