SC Criticises ‘Bench Hunting’, Says Overturning Previous Rulings Undermines Article 141

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday (November 26) strongly criticised the practice of ‘bench hunting’ by litigants looking to overturn or modify a previous bench’s ruling by approaching a new bench.

The court said that such practices undermine the finality of Supreme Court judgements, LiveLaw reported.

A bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih were hearing a petition by a murder accused seeking modification of his bail conditions when the court made these remarks.

“In the recent past, we have rather painfully observed a growing trend in this Court (of which we too are an indispensable part) of verdicts pronounced by Judges, whether still in office or not and irrespective of the time lapse since pronounced, being overturned by succeeding benches or specially constituted benches at the behest of some party aggrieved by the verdicts prior in point of time,” the court said.

“A matter that is res integra may not be reopened or revisited or else consistency in legal interpretation could be compromised and the special authority that is invested in decisions of this court, under Article 141, lost.”

The court, while rejecting the applicants petition, said that “overturning a prior verdict by a later verdict does not necessarily mean that justice is better served,” adding that any modification to the bail conditions in this case would undermine Article 141 of the Constitution.

“If any modification of such condition is made now and thereby the stringency relaxed, that would not only amount to overstepping the order of this Court granting bail but would send a wrong message of this Court being unconcerned with the principle of finality of judicial decisions. The stringent condition imposed by the bench while granting bail being justified on facts and in the circumstances, and there being no significant change in circumstances warranting a reconsideration, we see no reason to interfere,” the court observed.

Past judgements overturned

The court’s comments come after a slew of Supreme Court judgements were revisited. Among these judgements was the firecracker ban in Delhi, which was lifted last month to allow the use of ‘green firecrackers’ despite significant criticism from experts. 

More recently, a judgement disallowing retrospective environmental clearances was also recalled and placed before a fresh bench. The court had earlier this year quashed a 2017 notification and a 2021 Office Memorandum that allowed retrospective grants for environmental clearances. 

Days later, a judgement fixing timelines for governors to clear Bills passed by the state government was also revisited. The court held that the top court cannot impose any timelines for decisions of the President and the governor on granting assent to Bills under Articles 200/201 of the Constitution.

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