Concept of Natural Justice
Concept of Natural Justice
Concept of Natural Justice
In its initial, the concept of natural justice was confined to the Judicial proceeding only but with the advent of
welfare state the powers of administrative authorities have considerably increased as a result it becomes
impossible for law to determine the fair procedure to be followed by each authority while adjudicating any
disputes or any quasi-judicial proceedings.
Therefore, courts have made a remedy by establishing a norm to be follow by administrative authorities while
exercising theirs powers and performing their functions. Administrative authorities being a law executer must
provide benefits to the people but such objective cannot be fulfill in absence of effective control on the powers
given to them.
Court in order to prevent abuse of power and to check on their limits has evolved the principles of natural
justice as important safeguards against injustice. The object of natural justice is to secure justice to the citizens
and prevent contempt of justice. Decisions which violate the natural justice shall stand null and void. [i]
Nemo judex causa in sua means rule against bias. It is the first principles of natural justice which says no man
shall be judge in his own cause or a deciding authority must be impartial and neutral while deciding any case.
Thus the principle signify that in a circumstances where a judge or deciding authority is suspected to be bias
and partial then he/she shall be disqualify from determining any case before them. It formulates that justice
should not only be done but seen to be done. Proceedings before any adjudicating authority must be
according to the principles of natural justice.
Where it is found that a judge who is deciding any dispute has its own interest or some outcome derived from
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such case then the decision given by the authority shall not be execute or it remains void. It is said that
impartiality is the best characteristics for good administration. Human nature is such that a person ordinarily
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cannot take an objective decision in a case when he himself found an interest, as very rarely can person take
decision against his own interest. A person can apply his mind effectively when he follows impartiality. The rule
against bias thus avoids possibility of partial decisions. It also ensures public confidence in legal system of a
country. [ii]
In Cottle vs Cottle, the chairman of the bench was a friend of the wife’s family who had instituted matrimonial
proceedings against her husband. The wife had told the husband that chairman would decide the case in her
favor. The divisional court ordered rehearing. It later turned out that the chairman was a friend of wife’s family.
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In Mineral Development Corporation limited vs State of Bihar here the petitioner were granted mining lease
for 99 years in 1947. In 1953, the Secretary of revenue board issued a notice to the petitioners to show cause
within 15 days as to why the license should not be cancelled for violation by the petitioner of section 10, 12
and 14 of Mining Act.
The petitioner submitted a written reply denying the allegations. However, two years later, Government
quashed the license. The petitioner brought an action against the minister passing this order on the behalf of
government, on the ground that, the petitioner in 1952 opposed the minister in general election. Therefore, on
the account of political rivalry, the minister passed such an order, and hence order was suffered from personal
bias. Supreme Court found the allegation to be true and thus quashed the said order.[iii]
Same in case of Baidyanath Mohapatra vs State of Orissa, [iv] according to the recommendation of the review
committee, a government servant was prematurely retired at the age of 50 years. One of the members of
review committee who recommended premature retirement of the appellant happened to be the chairman of
the tribunal and confirmed the order of premature retirement. The Supreme Court held that the order of the
Tribunal was vitiated because the member who had administratively taken a decision against the appellant
considered the matter judicially as Chairman of the Tribunal, thereby he acted as a judge in his own cause.
b) Pecuniary bias- Pecuniary bias arises when the adjudicator has monetary or financial interest in the subject
matter of the dispute. Least pecuniary interest in the subject matter of litigation will disqualify any person from
acting as a judge.
c) In Jeejeebhoy vs Collector,[v] Chief Justice reconstituted the bench when it was found that one of the
members of the bench was a member of cooperative society for which the land had been acquired.
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Dimes vs Grand Junction Canal, this case regarded as a classic example of pecuniary bias. In this case a public
limited company filed a suit against a land owner in matter largely involving the interest of the company. The
Lord Chancellor who was a shareholder in the company decided the case and gave relief to the company. His
decision was quashed by the House of Lords because there was a pecuniary interest of the Lord Chancellor in
the Company.
In India also the same principle is accepted. It is obvious that pecuniary interest however small it may be in a
subject matter of the proceedings wholly disqualify a member from acting as a judge.
d) Subject matter bias- Subject matter simply means the “issue in question” or “the issue in controversy” or
“issue before the Judge”. Bias as to subject matter may arise when the Judge has general interest in the subject
matter in dispute. It may arise also when the deciding authority is directly or otherwise involved in subject
matter of the case.
In Muralidhar vs Kadam Singh, [vi] the court refused to quash the decision of Election Tribunal on the ground
that the wife of the chairman was a member of the Congress party whose candidate the petitioner defeated.
It gives right the party to respond to the evidence against them and to choose legal representative of their own
choice. Any adjudicating authorities while deciding a dispute between parties the principles of natural justice
forms a fundamental fair procedure among the parties. It is the duty of every person or body exercising judicial
or quasi-judicial functions to act in good faith and to listen fairly both the sides before passing any order.
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No party will made to suffer in person without giving not only fair opportunity of being heard but to correct
any relevant statement made, which is prejudicial to any of them.[vii] While deciding any case fairly it is not
mandatory for any decision making authority to follow the same procedure as that followed by a Court.
In case if the Legislature specifically authorizes an administrative authority to proceed without giving an
opportunity of heard, then except in case of recognised exceptions, the law would be violative of the principles
of fair hearing which is now read into Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. The sole purpose of rule of fair
hearing as to the Apex Court was to avoid the failure of justice. Thus, the essence of this principle is “the right
of fair hearing” or “the right to be heard”. Therefore any decisions which violate the principle of audi alteram
partem such can be quashed by court as against the principles of natural justice.
In Maneka Gandhi vs Union of India, [viii] the passport of the petitioner was impounded by the Government of
India in public interest. No opportunity was afforded to the petitioner before taking the impugned action. The
Supreme Court held that the order was violative of principles of Natural justice.
Even if the Statue does not provide any provision about giving of notice, and if such order adversely affects the
rights of an individual, in such cases also the notice is required to be given. A notice must be adequate and
contain:
the time, place and nature of hearing
a statement of specific charges or grounds and proposed action which the person has to meet
must be clear and unambiguous
must afford the party sufficient time, to prepare his case
not only provide the sufficient information relating to the case, but he ----- must also be informed of the
penalty proposed to be imposed in case of his failure to meet the case against him
legal authority under which hearing is to be held
The manner in which the notice is to be served is prescribed under statute. E.g Negotiable Instrument Act,
1881 requires that if a cheque is dishonored proper notice must be given by post or courier. Personal
information held not proper.
In K.A Abdul Khader vs Dy. Director, [x]the Statutory Rule prescribed the following mode to serve notice:
1. By delivering to him or
2. Sending it to him by registered post (it may returned undelivered)
3. If the above two modes does not fulfill then by affixing it on the outer door of the residence.
The mode of giving notice is a procedural matter. If the notice is to be given to a large class of persons, who are
educated, it may be given in newspaper. Individual notice is this case is not insisted.
In a case of Punjab National Bank vs All India Bank Employees Federation, [xi] the notice contained certain
charges but the penalty was imposed on the charges which were not mentioned in the notice. Therefore the
Court held notice was improper, and eventually the imposition of penalty was held invalid.
A vague or imprecise notice does not afford the party the desired reasonable opportunity. A notice would be
vague if it is based on no material or if it is vitiated by non-application of mind.
In Suresh Chandra Verma (Dr.) vs Chancellor Nagpur University, [xii] the employment notice issued by the
University, invited applications for the posts of Professor, Readers and Lecturers without indicating the
particular posts reserved subject wise. The notice was held to be bad in law since it only mentioned total
number of reserved posts without mentioning the particular posts reserved subject wise.
Exceptions to Notice
In certain circumstances the requirement as to giving notice to the concerned person may not be said to be
mandatory.
In S.P Paul vs Calcutta University, [xiii] the Calcutta High Court held that there was violation of natural justice in
so far as evidence of witnesses had been heard behinds the candidate’s back which was not known to him.
The Supreme Court in Hiranath Misra vs Rajendra Medical College, [xiv] in this case an enquiry was held
against some male students on the charge of entering girls’ hostel and indulging in indecent behavior towards
some girls. The Enquiry Committee recorded the statement s of the complainant girl but in the absence the
appellants.
The Committee found them guilty and therefore an expulsion order was served on them. The said order was
challenged because evidence was taken at their back. The Court held that there was no denial of natural justice
as the gist of the evidence was brought to their notice and they were provided with an opportunity to rebut it.
The court observed that the girls would not have ventured to make the statements in presence of the
appellants except at a great risk of retaliation and harassment.
C) Cross Examination:
Cross examination is one of the effective methods of establishing truth and exposing falsehood. While in
administrative adjudications it is not necessarily mean that the right of cross examination of witness should be
given to the person concerned. It depends upon the facts and circumstances of the case i.e unless the
circumstances demand that in the absence of the right to cross examination, the party cannot put up an
effective defence in his favor.
In State of Kerala vs K.T Shaduli, [xv] the respondent-assessee filed return on the basis of his book of account,
which was later appeared to be incorrect by Sales Tax Officer. It was said that certain sales appearing in the
books of accounts of wholesale dealers were not mentioned in the account books of the respondent.
He applied to the Sales Tax Officer for giving Opportunity to cross examine wholesale dealers which was
rejected by him. Holding that the denial of dealers request to cross examine wholesale dealers was denial of
fair hearing, the Supreme Court held that it was only through cross examination that the assesse could
establish that what was mentioned in his account books was correct and that mentioned in the wholesale
dealers was wrong.
Where in circumstances evidence is given viva voce against a person, he must have opportunity to hear it and
to put the witnesses in cross examination. Refusal to allow such cross examination would amount to violation
of principles of natural justice.
State of J & K vs Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed ,[xvi] In this case the Government of Jammu and Kashmir
appointed a Commission of Inquiry to inquire into the charges of corruption and maladministration against the
ex-chief minister of the State. The request of the respondent to cross examine the witnesses who had filed
affidavits in support of allegations against him was denied.
An appeal was filed before Supreme Court against the decision of the commission on the ground that denial of
the opportunity to cross examined the witnesses violates the rule of fair hearing. Disallowing the challenge
made by the respondent, the Supreme Court observed that where, no oral hearing is held and only when
statements are called for from affected party, there is no right to cross examining the witnesses.
D) Representation by a lawyer:
The fourth requirement as to the fair hearing is legal representation or representation by a lawyer. Everyone
should be given a chance to represent himself or herself in the court of law through lawyer of their own choice.
In administrative proceedings the right of representation by a lawyer is not ordinarily considered as an
important part of natural justice [xvii] and as such is not claimable as a matter of right, unless the said right is
conferred by the statute.
In cases where statute is silent, the courts have in certain situations recognized that some professional
assistance must be given to the party to make his right to defend himself meaningful. Such situation may arise
when the affected party is illiterate or a question of law is involved or the matter is complicated or technical or
where expert evidence is on record.
In M.H Hoskot vs State of Maharashtra, [xviii] the apex court ruled that right to free legal aid at the cost of the
state to an accused, who could not afford legal services by reasons of poverty, indigence or inability to
communicate the situation, was part of fair, just and reasonable procedure implicit in Article 21. Free legal aid
to the poor person has been declared to be a state’s duty and not governmental charity. This right not only
arises at the commencement of trial but also attaches when he is for the first time produced before the
Magistrate.
Article 22(3)(b) of the Constitution expressly denies the right to be represented by a legal practitioner to a
detenu in preventive detention proceedings. [xix]
In Board of Trustees of the Port of Bombay vs Dilip Kumar, a case which involved a disciplinary proceedings
against an employee of a statutory authority. It was held that it will be violation of the rule of natural justice if
the employer is represented by a presenting officer who is legally trained before the enquiry officer while the
employer denies such a facility to the employee.
In S.P Paul vs Calcutta University, a candidate was debarred from appearing in the B.A examination for two
years because he had use unfair means at the examination. The Calcutta High Court held that there was a
violation of natural justice in so far as evidence of witnesses had been heard behind the candidate’s back
which was not known to him. The main thrust of the case is that whatever information is obtained by the
administrative authority must be disclosed to the other part and an opportunity to rebut it must be given.
Sometimes before initiating an action against an individual, a preliminary inquiry may be made into the matter.
The question is whether such report should be known to the affected person. In T.V.R Radhakrishna vs State of
Tamil Nadu, the collector and director of rural development submitted reports to the government about the
working of a Panchayat. Then government issued notice under relevant statute calling upon panchayat to show
cause why it should not be dissolved. The order was challenged because the copies of the reports had not
been given to the petitioners. The Supreme Court held that natural justice was not violated as the substance of
the reports had been given in the show cause notice which was issued to the panchayat.
Conclusion:
The principles of natural justice have been adopted by the judiciary to protect public rights against the
arbitrary decision by the administrative authorities. At all the stages of the proceedings the main motive of the
principles of natural justice is to prevent miscarriage of justice. One must keep in mind that in order to held the
decision of the adjudicating authorities as valid principles of natural justice is equally important in procedure.
In India the principles of natural justice are provided in Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution. With the
introduction of concept of substantive and procedural due process in Article 21, all that fairness which is
included in the principles of natural justice can be read into article 21. The violation of principles natural justice
results in arbitrariness and such decision is said to be void or voidable.
End-Notes:
[i] Nature and Concept of Administrative law, Prof Narender Kumar.
[ii] Administrative Law, Dr. J.J.R Upadhyaya.
[iii] AIR 1960 SC 468.
[iv] AIR 1988 SC 2218.
[v] AIR 1965 SC 1096.
[vi] AIR 1964 MB 111.
[vii] Painter vs. Livorpool Oil Light Co. (1836) A & E. 433 (448-49).
[viii] AIR 1978 SC 597.
[ix] Municipal Board Pushkar vs. State Transport Authority, AIR 1965 SC 458.
[x] AIR 1976 Mad. 233.
[xi] AIR 1960 SC 16.
[xii] AIR 1990 SC 2023.
[xiii] AIR 1970 Cal. 282.
[xiv] AIR 1973 SC 1260.
[xv] AIR 1977 SC 1627.
[xvi] AIR 1967 SC 122.
[xvii] Kalindi vs. Tata Locomotives, AIR 1960 SC 914; Mohinder Singh Gill vs. Chief Election Commissioner, AIR
1978 SC 851.
[xviii] AIR 1978 SC 1548.
[xix] Article 22 of the Constitution.
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