Orissa High Court Weekly Round Up: May 23 - May 29, 2022

Nominal Index: 1. Dr. Minaketan Pani v. State of Orissa, 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 81 2. Krushna Prasad Sahoo v. State of Orissa & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 82 3. Chittaranjan Mohanty v. State of Odisha & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 83 4. Lasyamayee Mohanta v. Union of India & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 84 5. Rabindra Panigrahi v. State of Odisha & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 85 6. Sashibhusan Das v. Lord Lingaraj Mahaprabhu & Anr., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 86 7. M/s. JSW Steel Ltd. Versus Union of India, 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 87 8. Ugrasen Sahu v. State of Odisha & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 88 9. Sovakar Guru v. State of Odisha & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 89 10. Kantaro Kondagari @ Kajol v. State of Odisha & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 90 11. Dulamani Patel v. State of Odisha & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 91 12. Varsha Priyadarshini v. Government of India & Ors., 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 92 Judgments/Orders Reported This Week: 1. Honourable Exoneration In Departmental Proceedings Would Warrant Quashing Of Criminal Prosecution Arising From Same Set Of Facts: Orissa High Court Case Title: Dr. Minaketan Pani v. State of Orissa Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 81 In a landmark decision, the Orissa High Court has held that honourable exoneration in departmental proceedings would warrant quashment of criminal prosecution which emanated from the same set of facts. While quashing criminal charges against the petitioner, a Single Judge Bench of Chief Justice Dr. S. Muralidhar held, "…in the facts and circumstances of the present case where on the same charges on which the Petitioner is facing criminal trial he has been honourably exonerated in the departmental proceedings, the Court adopts the reasoning of the decisions in Radheyshyam Kejriwal v. State of West Bengal (supra) and Ashoo Surendranath Tewari v. Deputy Superintendent of Police, EOW, CBI (supra) and sets aside the impugned order dated 15th January 2009, passed by the Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (S) Cuttack in G.R. Case No.1057 of 2007." 2. Just One Psychiatrist For All Prisoners With Mental Illnesses; Not Sustainable: Orissa High Court Expresses Concern On Prison Conditions Case Title: Krushna Prasad Sahoo v. State of Orissa & Ors. Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 82 The Orissa High Court has expressed deep concerns on the issue of the mental health of prisoners. On knowing that there exists only one psychiatrist to attend all prisoners in the state with mental illness, a Division Bench of Chief Justice S. Muralidhar and Justice R.K. Pattanaik noted, "This situation is unsustainable considering that it is physically impossible for just one psychiatrist to attend to all prisoners with mental illnesses." The development came in an ongoing case in which the High Court had previously directed the Director-General, Prisons, to ensure food, hygiene, and health facilities in all the jails/sub-jails of the State. It had also directed all the District Legal Services Authorities (DLSAs) to inspect the above-noted basic amenities in all the prisons and sub-jails of Odisha. In an earlier order, the District Magistrates were directed to visit the jails using the prison inspection format prepared by Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, New Delhi (CHRI). Based on the reports of these visits, the OSLSA submitted that there are at least 286 prisoners with mental illnesses in the various jails and sub-jails. The Director General, Prisons anticipated that this number may be even higher and around 500 prisoners. The Court expressed deep concern on the submission that there is just one psychiatrist who caters to the needs of all prisoners in the State. The Court also touched on the issues of overcrowding, Prison Development Board, segregation of prisoners, and other concerns. 3. Orissa High Court Issues Directions To Govt For Improving Public Healthcare Facilities In State Case Title: Chittaranjan Mohanty v. State of Odisha & Ors. Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Ori) 83 The Orissa High Court recently held hearing on a holiday (21st May 2022) to review the lacunae in the Public Healthcare Facilities of the State. It also issued a slew of directions to the State Government for improvement of conditions in the government hospitals. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Dr. S. Muralidhar and Justice Radha Krishna Pattanaik expresses serious disappointment over unavailability of basic medical facilities and observed, "Nearly six months have been elapsed since the visits were undertaken by the teams of the DLSAs. The Court finds from the reports submitted by them that in many of the districts urgent corrective action requires to be taken. In many DHHs, CHCs and PHCs not all the doctors shown on the rolls of the facility were present; in many no nurses were found and staff were absent. Lack of cleanliness is a major issue as are lack of functional, clean toilets. Even the availability ...

Orissa High Court Weekly Round Up: May 23 - May 29, 2022

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