Criminal Antecedents Hidden in PIL: Madhya Pradesh High Court Imposes Costs, Issues Warning

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has underscored the importance of fairness in administrative decision-making while simultaneously cautioning against misuse of public interest litigation, in a recent order that balances procedural justice with accountability.

The court, while deciding a review plea, held that a party likely to be affected by an enquiry must be granted an opportunity of hearing, even as it imposed costs on original petitioners for suppressing material facts relating to their criminal antecedents.

The order was passed by a Division Bench comprising Justice Anand Pathak and Justice Pushpendra Yadav in a review petition filed by Chaurasiya Nav Yuvak Mandal Billowa through its President Hariom Chaurasiya. The review arose from an earlier order dated March 6, 2026, passed in a public interest litigation concerning allegations that the petitioner society, which runs a school, was misusing school land for commercial purposes as a marriage garden.

Appearing for the review petitioner, Advocate Prashant Sharma contended that the earlier direction requiring the District Collector to conduct an enquiry and decide the representation did not expressly grant the petitioner an opportunity to present its case. He argued that such an omission could result in prejudice, as the society maintained that the land in question was being used only for school and temple-related purposes. It was also pointed out that an application under the Madhya Pradesh Sarvajanik Sthan (Dharmik Bhawan Evam Gatividhiyon Ka Viniyaman) Adhiniyam, 2001 was pending consideration.

On the other hand, Advocate Akram Khan, appearing for the original writ petitioners, and Government Advocate Ravindra Dixit for the State, opposed the plea. However, the court found merit in the limited grievance raised by the review petitioner.

In its order, the bench observed that “an opportunity of hearing should be given to review petitioner also so that real facts come to the knowledge of District Collector.” The court thus clarified that the Collector, while conducting the enquiry pursuant to the earlier order, must hear all affected parties before arriving at a conclusion.

Significantly, the court also flagged a serious lapse on the part of the original PIL petitioners. It noted that some of them had criminal antecedents, a fact that was not disclosed when instituting the public interest litigation. The bench remarked that such disclosure is essential to ensure that “stream of PIL may not be polluted by use or misuse of persons who are not socially inclined or public spirited.”

Taking a stern view of this suppression, the court imposed costs of ₹20,000 on the original petitioners, directing them to deposit the amount with the Gwalior Municipal Corporation. In addition, the petitioners were directed to plant 25 saplings in their locality within 15 days as a condition precedent for consideration of their case by the District Collector.

The court further directed that compliance regarding plantation be uploaded on the NISARG App, enabling verification by the Registry. Proof of payment of costs was also required to be submitted before the Court. The matter has been directed to be listed under the caption “Direction” in July 2026 for monitoring compliance.

Case Title: Chaurasiya Nav Yuvak Mandal Billowa through its President Hariom Chaurasiya v. The State of Madhya Pradesh and Others

Date of Order: March 23, 2026

Bench: Justice Anand Pathak and Justice Pushpendra Yadav