TMI Blog1990 (11) TMI 228X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... efer to the parties as per their nomenclature in the writ petitions. The petitioner challenged in the writ petitions the show cause notices under Section 16 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959. Before the learned Single Judge, who dealt with the writ petitions, two contentions were raised; one is that the show cause notices have clearly indicated closed mind and this vitiated them. The second is that the third respondent abdicated his powers by simply copying the notice issued by the second respondent under the Central Excise Act. The learned Single Judge found that the third respondent is not justified in drafting the impugned show cause notices in the manner in which they were done. However, the learned Single Judge opined that ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r. It is true that the stage of issuance of show cause notice; be it so in disciplinary action or under any other statute, is a premature one for this Court to examine the propriety or otherwise of the proceedings. But there are exceptions to this rule. We need not delineate all the exceptions. One of the well accepted exceptions is that if the Authority issuing the show cause notice has done it with a foreclosed or a prejudged mind, that would amount to violation of the principles of natural justice, and proceedings further on the basis of the said cause notice is not permissible. In the instant case, the impugned show cause notices bear the following passage: Thus it is proved beyond any shadow of doubt that the dealers have been cland ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... learned Single Judge of the High Court of Calcutta also opined that if from the attending circumstances and also from the language of the charge-sheet, it appears that the Disciplinary Authority had really drawn a positive conclusion against a delinquent officer and has started disciplinary proceeding by issuing a charge-sheet, that proceeding must be held to be vitiated by bias and a closed mind and could be interfered even at that stage. 7. In Dr. Anil Kumar v. State of West Bengal [1983 (2) SLR 306] a learned Single Judge of the High Court of Calcutta observed that is well-settled that the rules of natural justice will apply where the charge-sheet was framed with a closed mind. 8. In Sampath, M.K. v. The Committee of Management of P ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
