Patna HC pulls up former Sitamarhi DM for making personal comment against petitioner
Be mindful of your language, HC tells official on use of uncharitable remarks
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Patna — Manesh Kumar Meena who happens to be a Sanskrit scholar, need to be reprimanded. The order dated February 25, 2023 of the DM-cum-Second Appellate Authority under Bihar Public Grievance Redressal Act. 2015 Sitamarhi is expunged to the extent it makes personal aspersions against the petitioner," the order, passed on Friday, said,
Citing William Shakespeare's Othello, the bench said ~ a person's good reputation is their most valuable possession and
URS USE, SVERUAR 3 TRAIN SAAD NUE, SERENE, MEIN EERE RD not benefit the slander, yet it as stigmatic, baseless and an leaves the victim completely abuse of power. ruined". Later, he moved the HC for The dispute arose due to a — quashing of the order. While clogged drainage system built upholding the administrative under a governmentschemein order on the drainage issue Dr Jha's village affecting his based on ground reports, the farmland. Jha appealed to the — High Court expunged all perDM, who rejected it while alleg- — sonal aspersions against Dr Jha ing in the order sheet that the While the High Court severely petitioner harboured a"mentalcondemned the tone and lanity to harass" local SC/ST com: guage used by the officer, it did munity members. not alter the core administrative Challenging the remark as — order regarding the underlying stigmatic and an abuse of power, —_ drainage and waterlogging disJha preferred a review petition pute. The Court relied on the before the Divisional Commis- — Supreme Court's decision in AM sioner, Tirhut Division, MuzafMathur v. Pramod Kumar farpur, which was rejected by — Gupta, in which it was observed May 2, 2023 order onthe ground — that judicial restraint and discithat there is no provision for pline are as necessary to the review under the Right to Public orderly administration of justice Grievance Redressal Act, as they are to the effectiveness of Areview before the Divisional an army, and that judges and Commissioner was rejected on quasi-judicial authorities must the ground that the Actdoes not use temperate language and provide for review, and the petifocus on the merits rather than tioner then moved the High attacking personal character,
About the Author
Arun Kumar is a veteran journalist and Associate Editor with Hindustan Times, based in Patna. For more than three and a half decades, his reporting has chronicled Bihar's complex political landscape, university and educational reforms, landmark judicial rulings of the Patna High Court, administrative governance, and social shifts across the state. Known for deep investigative reporting and source-grounded accountability journalism, he is a recipient of the prestigious K.C. Kulish Journalism Award and the Keshav Bhatt Journalism Award, and is an LDM Fellow.