Brevity Of Reasons In Order Refusing Sanction To Prosecute Public Servant Not Ground To Invoke Writ Jurisdiction: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that mere brevity of reasons in an order refusing sanction to prosecute public servants is not, by itself, a ground to invoke writ jurisdiction, so long as the record demonstrates due application of mind by the competent authority.Justice Amit Mahajan observed,“Mere brevity of reasons in the impugned order, by itself, cannot be a ground to invoke writ jurisdiction, particularly when the order ex-facie indicates that the competent authority has examined the material and found no justification to accord sanction.”The observation was made while dismissing a writ petition challenging the refusal of sanction under Section 197 CrPC to prosecute certain police officials for alleged harassment and false implication of Petitioner and her family in a FIR lodged in 2014.Petitioner alleged that the FIR was lodged due to collusion between police officials and an illegal occupant of her property. The said criminal proceedings culminated in acquittal of her husband, which was subsequently upheld by the Appellate court.Thereafter, Petitioner sought sanction for prosecution against concerned ASI and Inspector, alleging misuse of official position in connection with the FIR.As her request was declined, she approached the High Court on the ground that it was a non-speaking order.Rejecting the contention, the High Court held that orders granting or refusing sanction for prosecution are administrative in nature, and the scope of judicial review over such decisions is limited. It further clarified that adequacy or sufficiency of reasons is not for the writ court to examine, nor can it sit in appeal over the satisfaction arrived at by the sanctioning authority.In the present case, the Court said, it is evident that the competent authority had considered Petitioner's application along with the material placed on record and had arrived at a conclusion that no cogent material was found to justify grant of prosecution sanction.“The entire matter, including the application, the responses of the Police department, the subsequent clarifications, the statements of the accused officers, RTI documents, complaints filed by the Petitioners, etc., was examined…it emerges that not only the competent authority has duly considered the case of the Petitioner but has also applied its mind to the material placed before it to arrive at a reasoned satisfaction,” it observed.The Court further noted that the allegations raised by the Petitioner pertain to events dating back more than a decade. As such, it dismissed the plea.Appearance: For the Petitioner : Mr. Shivam & Mr. Salman Naushad, Advs. For the Respondent : Mr. Sanjeev Bhandari, ASC for the State SI Sunil Chandra, PS- Ambedkar NagarCase title: Triveni v. Home Department Govt. Of NCT Of DelhiCitation: 2026 LiveLaw (Del) 7Case no.: W.P.(CRL) 2004/2025Click here to read order

Brevity Of Reasons In Order Refusing Sanction To Prosecute Public Servant Not Ground To Invoke Writ Jurisdiction: Delhi High Court

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