Gauhati High Court Rules on APSC Inquiry Report Implementation

Court's Stance on APSC Inquiry Report

Guwahati, March 18: According to a division bench of the Gauhati High Court, the government cannot be mandated by courts to act on the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry regarding the APSC cash-for-job scandal, as these recommendations are merely advisory.

“It is essential to recognize that the report from a Commission of Inquiry serves a recommendatory purpose, functioning solely as a fact-finding entity. Such suggestions are not obligatory for the government, which retains the authority to either adopt, dismiss, or partially implement the report,” stated Chief Justice Ashutosh Kumar and Justice Arun Dev Choudhury while addressing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL).

The PIL was initiated by Pritom Hazarika and Jon Jyoti Sarmah, urging the State authorities to take prompt action based on the inquiry report by Justice (retd) BK Sharma.

The court also noted that since 2014, the APSC has held public examinations annually without any significant complaints that would cast doubt on the integrity of the process.

“This suggests that necessary corrective measures may have been implemented, even if it is not explicitly stated that these actions were in response to the commission's recommendations,” the ruling indicated.

Furthermore, the court clarified that a commission of inquiry does not adjudicate the rights of individuals nor does it establish guilt, emphasizing that the report is “judicially unenforceable and relies on the government's policy decisions.”

“Thus, the execution of the report is subject to administrative priorities. The court's role is to ensure that the report is presented to the legislature, reviewed by the government, and to evaluate if any rejection of the report is done in bad faith or arbitrarily,” the ruling concluded.