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TMI Blog1968 (4) TMI 90X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 15 persons against whom inquiry is to be made. The petitioners in the three O.J.C.s have respectively been referred to in Items 6, 2 and 12 of the Schedule. In O.J.C. 418, Shri Harekrushna Mahtab, Shri Nabakrushna Choudhury, Shri Pabitra Mohan Pradhan, Shri Santanu Kumar Das and Shri Surendranath Patnaik were originally impleaded as opposite parties Nos. 5 to 9. Shri Biju Patnaik filed an application in this case to be impleaded as an opposite party. As the other parties had no objection he was also impleaded as opposite party No. 10. Rules were issued and except opposite parties Nos. 3 and 6 the other opposite parties showed cause. By its judgment dated February 22, 1968 the High Court dismissed the applications, holding that the notification of the State Government dated October 26, 1967 appointing the Commission of Inquiry was legal and valid. Against this judgment the petitioners in all the three O.J.C.s have preferred the present appeals by certificate of the Orissa High Court. 3. Shri Harekrushna Mahtab was the Chief Minister of Orissa from 1947 to 1949. Shri Nabakrushna Choudhury was the Chief Minister from 1950 to 1956. In the 1957 General Election to the Orissa Legisla ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... matter to Sri Singh Deo, leader of the Opposition and Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. Sri Singh Deo initially accepted the responsibility, but later on expressed his unwillingness. The Orissa Government had a special audit of the allegations and sent the report to the Public Account Committee in the year 1964. While the matter was pending with the Public Accounts Committee, Sri Biju Patnaik resigned the Chief Ministership of Orissa on October 1, 1963. He, however, continued to be the chairman of the State Planning Board till January 29, 1965 when Sri Biren Mitra was the Chief Minister. Sri Mitra dropped out Sri Pabitra Mohan Pradhan from the cabinet. During the tenure of the office of Sri Mitra as the Chief Minister of Orissa, some members of the Opposition in the Assembly, which included all the members of the Swatantra Party, filed a memorandum before the President of India alleging misappropriation, misconduct and fraud against Sri Patnaik, Sri Mitra and certain other Ministers and requested the President of India to appoint a Commission of Inquiry to inquire into these allegations. The President referred the Memorandum to his Council of Ministers. It is said the Cen ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... such time as may be specified in the notification, and the Commission so appointed shall make the inquiry and perform the functions accordingly : .................................................................... 5. Section 4 vests in the Commission the powers of a civil court while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure and reads as follows : 4. Powers of Commission. - The Commission shall have the powers of a civil court, while trying a suit under the Code of civil Procedure, 1908 (Act V of 1908), in respect of the following matters, namely :- (a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath; (b) requiring the discovery and production of any document; (c) receiving evidence on affidavits; (d) requisitioning any public record or copy thereof from any court or office; (e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or documents; (f) any other matter which may be prescribed. 6. Section 5 empowers the appropriate Government, by a notification in the Official Gazette, to confer on the Commission additional powers as provided in all or any of the sub-ss. (2), (3), (4) and (5) of that section. Secti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... HE 23RD JUNE 1961 TO THE 8TH MARCH 1967, THE SAID PERSON AS NAMED IN THE SCHEDULE : (1) committed various acts of misconduct, misappropriation, fraud, negligence, favouritism, nepotism, illegalities, irregularities, improprieties and abuse of their power in the matters of administration of the State : (2) abused their official positions for securing pecuniary and other benefits for themselves, members of their families, their relations, their friends, their partymen (Congressmen) and others in whom they were interested, from out of the funds of the State exchequer and otherwise to the detriment of the interests of the State; (3) committed breach of trust and acts of impropriety with respect to the properties and assets of the State with a view to further the interests of their party organisation, i.e., the Congress; (4) entered into contracts and other monetary transactions for the supply of machinery, tools, equipments and execution of works, themselves, or permitted their family members, relations, friends, partymen and others to enter into such contracts and transactions with the Government of Orissa, with different Departments of the Government of Orissa, with Corpo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o amass wealth and their assets during the aforesaid period have increased disproportionate to the known sources of their income, by abuse of their constitutional positions. Under such circumstances the people in general and the Government have expressed a desire that the matters aforesaid regarding the aforesaid persons should be enquired into through a Commission of Inquiry so that facts may be found which alone will facilitate rectification and prevention of recurrence of such lapses and securing the ends of justice and establishing a moral public order in future. Under such circumstances, the Government of the State of Orissa are of the opinion that it is necessary to appoint a Commission of Inquiry for the purpose of making a full inquiry into the aforesaid matters which are of definite public importance. NOW, THEREFORE, the State Government, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 3 of the Commission of Inquiries Act, 1952 (Act 60 of 1952), hereby appoint a Commission of Inquiry consisting of Shri Justice H. R. Khanna of the Delhi High Court to inquire into and report on and in respect of :- WHETHER THE PERSONS MENTIONED IN THE SCHEDULE, DURING THE AFORESAI ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... (11) by their aforesaid conduct have put the State Government to huge financial loss which has result in a financial crisis for the State ? (12) by their aforesaid conduct have hampered the entire industrial development in the State ? (13) by their aforesaid conduct have given rise to serious problems of unemployment ? (14) by their aforesaid conduct have spread corruption in the Government machinery and have polluted the general public morale in the State and have also brought about a general demoralisation of the political, social, economic and moral aspects of the Society ? (15) by their aforesaid conduct have put the State to financial loss which has developed into a great economic crisis and has resulted in rapid retardation of the progress of trade, industry and commerce, a deplorable fall in the agricultural output, spread of corruption in all wings of administration and a general breakdown in the morale and character of the people of the State ? The Commission of Inquiry may also perform such other functions as are necessary or incidental to the inquiry. The Commission shall inquire into the detailed particulars pertaining to the aforesaid matters along w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ment action or legislative policy and hence the notification was bad. The contention of Mr. Asoke Sen was that an inquiry for mere collection of facts unrelated to any future course of Government action or legislative policy does not fall within the purview of s. 3 of the Act and it is not a valid exercise of statutory power to appoint such a Commission. We are unable to accept the argument put forward on behalf of the appellants as correct. The purpose of the enquiry is stated in the preamble to the notification which states that the matters aforesaid regarding the aforesaid persons should be enquired into through a Commission of Inquiry so that facts may be founds which alone will facilitate rectification and prevention of recurrence of such lapses and securing the ends of justice and establishing a moral public order in future . In other words, the object of the enquiry to be made by the Commission appointed under s. 3 of the Act was to take appropriate legislative or administrative measures to maintain the purity and integrity of political administration in the State. In our opinion, the appointment of the Commission of Inquiry in the present case was in valid exercise of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rson or body conducting the inquiry and the recording of its findings on those facts in its report cannot but be regarded as ancillary to the inquiry itself, for the inquiry becomes useless unless the findings of the inquiring body are made available to the Government which set up the inquiry. It is, in our judgment, equally ancillary that the person or body conducting the inquiry should express its own view on the facts founds by it for the consideration of the appropriate Government in order to enable it to take such measure as it may think fit to do. The whole purpose of setting up of a Commission of Inquiry consisting of experts will be frustrated and the elaborate process of inquiry will be deprived of its utility if the opinion and the advice of the expert body as to the measures the situation disclosed calls for cannot be placed before the Government for consideration notwithstanding that doing so cannot be to the prejudice of anybody because it has no force of its own. In our view the recommendations of a Commission of Inquiry are of great importance to the Government in order to enable it to make up its mind as to what legislative or administrative measures should be adopt ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o consider the next question arising in these appeals, namely, whether the power was exercised by the State Government for a purpose alien to the statute. It was contended by Mr. Asoke Sen that there was a bitter political rivalry between the appellants on the one had and Shri Pabitra Mohan Pradhan, Shri Harekrushna Mehtab, Shri Singh Deo and the other persons who are at present in-charge of the Orissa administration. Reference was made by Mr. Asoke Sen to the political history of the State of Orissa from 1947 up to the General Elections, 1967 and in particular to the rivalry between Sri Biju Patnaik and Sri Singh Deo who was the leader of Opposition in the previous Government and also to the internal rivalry between the two political groups in the Congress Legislative party, one led by Shri Harekrushna Mahtab and the other led by Shri Biji Patnaik and Shri Biren Mitra. It was urged that the Commission was set up by the present Orissa Government not in the public interest but for a collateral purpose, namely, for getting rid of Shri Biju Patnaik and Shri Biren Mitra and driving them out of the political life of Orissa. Mr. Asoke Sen said that the object of the equity was character ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ources should not go into the pockets of the corrupt group led by Shri Biju Patnaik and Shri Biren Mitra but should be used for giving a better life to the people of the State . In para 6 of the affidavit Shri Pabitra Mohan Pradhan further states : I have always believed and still believe that politics is not for the purpose of serving the selfish ends and to satisfy the greed of any politician or any person or any group of persons. Politics is for the service of the people and involves sacrificing one's life and comforts for raising the living standard of the overwhelming poverty-stricken people of our State and our country so that they may enjoy a good life and hold up their heads with pride. In para 5 he has denied that there was any intention on his part to carry on character assassination of Shri Biju Patnaik, Shri Biren Mitra and their group. It is true that the appointment of the Commission of Inquiry may have been made partly on account of the political rivalry between the parties but having perused the affidavits filed by the appellants and the respondents in this case, we are satisfied that the main object of the appointment of the Commission of Inquiry was not to s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... would be quite different if one came to the conclusion that under the guise of improvement of a road, certain moneys had been used really diminishing the expenses of the Automobile Club or anything of that sort and that there had been a turning aside of public moneys to illicit purposes. 14. The principle was applied by Denning, L.J. in Earl Fitzwilliam's Wentworth Estate Co. Ltd. v. Minister of Town and Country Planning [1951] 2 K.B. 284. It was a case concerning the validity of a compulsory purchase made by the Central Land Board, and confirmed by the Minister, under the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1947, in respect of a plot of land, ripe for development, which the owner was not prepared to sell at the existing use value. The landowner applied to have the order quashed, as not having been made for any purpose connected with the Board's function under the Act, but for the purpose of enforcing the Board's policy of sales at existing use values. The majority (consisting of Somer-well and Singleton, L.J.) held that, thought the main purpose of the Board may well have been to induce landowners in general and the company, in particular, to adopt on ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... me other purpose which is not authorised by law, then the department exceeds its powers and the action is invalid. 15. Applying the test to the present case, we are of opinion that the dominant purpose of setting up the Commission of Inquiry was to promote measures for maintaining purity and integrity of the administration in the political life of the State and not the character assassination of Shri Biju Patnaik and Shri Biren Mitra and their group. 16. It follows therefore that the impugned notification of the Orissa Government, dated October 26, 1967 is legally valid. 17. We proceed to consider the next argument put forward on behalf of the appellants, namely, that the appointment of the Commission of Inquiry was illegal because it constituted contempt of Court. It was pointed out that items with regard to Shri Biren Mitra Referred to in the impugned notification were the subject-matter of civil litigation and there was a First Appeal pending in the High Court. It appears that all the items of charges regarding Shri Biren Mitra were included in the Memorandum submitted by Shri Nisamoni Khuntia Secretary. Sanjukta Socialist Party to the President of India. The memoran ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e trial by the Courts of law and the Commission of Inquiry is altogether different. In any case, it cannot be said that the Commission of Inquiry would be liable for contempt of Court if it proceeded to enquire into matters referred to it by the Government Notification. In appointing a Commission of Inquiry under s. 3 of the Act the Orissa Government is exercising a statutory power and in making the inquiry contemplated by the notification, the Commission is performing its statutory duty. We have already held that in the appointment of the Commission of Inquiry the Government was acting bona fide. It is, therefore, not possible to accept the argument of the appellants that the setting up of the Commission of Inquiry by the State Government or the continuance of the inquiry by the Commission so constituted would be tantamount to contempt of Court. To constitute contempt of court, there must be involved some act done or writing published calculated to bring a court or a judge of the court into contempt or to lower his authority or something calculated to obstruct or interfere with the due course of justice or the lawful process of the courts see Reg. v. Gray [1900] 2 Q.B. 36., ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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