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Doctrine of Contemporanea Expositio - Indian Laws - GeneralExtract Doctrine of Contemporanea Expositio- ... The principle of contemporanea exposition (interpreting a statute or any other document by reference to the exposition it has received from contemporary authority) can be invoked though the same will not always be decisive of the question of construction. (Maxwell 12th Edn. p. 268). In Crawford on Statutory Construction (1940 Edn.) in para 219 (at pp. 393-395) it has been stated that administrative construction (i.e. contemporaneous construction placed by administrative or executive officers charged with executing a statute) generally should be clearly wrong before it is overturned; such a construction, commonly referred to as practical construction, although not controlling, is nevertheless entitled to considerable weight; it is highly persuasive. As was explained in Baleshwar Bagarti v. Bhagirathi Dass 7 C.L.J. 563 : 35 C. 701 : 12 C.W.N. it is a well-settled principle of interpretation that Courts in construing a Statute will give much weight to the interpretation put upon it, at the time of its enactment and since, by those whose duty it has been to construe, execute and apply it, although such interpretation has not by any means a controlling effect upon the Courts and may be disregarded for cogent and persuasive reasons. We may add that if the contention of the appellants were to prevail, the object of the Legislature would obviously be defeated; instead of a simple and definite rule as to the mode in which transfers are to be effected, we would have here all the uncertainty which prevails in other systems of law as to the manner in which transfers may be validly effected by a corporate body. [Desh Bandhu Gupta v. Delhi Stock Exchange Association Ltd.- 1979 (2) TMI 175 - SUPREME COURT ] Scope of Contemporanea Expositio- The Doctrine of Contemporanea Expositio is applied as a guide to the interpretation of a statute or even document by referring to the exposition that the same had received from competent authority at the relevant point of time. This doctrine is also relatable to the doctrine of stare decisis whereunder, an exposition standing for a long length of time, is considered to be a law settled and is applied as such. As regards the contemporaneous construction placed by the administrative or executive officers charged with executing statute, the Courts lean in favour of attaching considerable weight to the same but, it cannot be laid down that understanding of a particular administrative or executing authority is always fait accompli and has to be applied even if erroneous. The true principle is just to the contrary: that is, if a construction placed by the contemporary authority is found to be clearly wrong or erroneous, the same deserves to be disregarded. [ULTRATECH CEMENT LTD. AND OTHERS VERSUS STATE OF RAJASTHAN AND OTHERS - 2020 (7) TMI 513 - SUPREME COURT ]
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