Gurudev Singh vs. State Of Odisha

Facts

The petitioner, Gurudev Singh, approached the Orissa High Court in March 2021 to challenge a memorandum dated 22nd July 2017, issued by the Works Department, Government of Odisha. This memorandum was issued consequent to the commencement of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime. The petition was filed significantly after the issuance of the impugned memorandum, with no valid explanation provided for the inordinate delay.

Held

The Court held that the writ petition could not be entertained due to the inordinate delay in approaching the High Court. The petitioner had failed to provide any valid explanation for the significant time lapse between the issuance of the memorandum on 22nd July 2017 and the filing of the writ petition in March 2021. The Court applied the principle of laches, which bars relief to a party who has unduly delayed in seeking it. Consequently, the petition was dismissed on this ground. No decision was made on the merits of the challenge to the memorandum itself.

Key Issues

1. Whether the writ petition is maintainable in view of the inordinate delay in approaching the Court, as per the principles of laches? The petitioner contended that the memorandum dated 22nd July 2017 was being challenged. The revenue or State did not appear to have made any specific arguments recorded in the judgment regarding the merits of the challenge to the memorandum itself, but the Court's decision was based on the delay in filing the petition. The Court did not record any arguments from the petitioner explaining the delay.