By Dr. K. Shivaram, Ajay R. Singh, Advocates
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The hierarchy of the Courts requires the High Courts also to accept the decision of Apex Court, and its interpretation of the orders issued by the executive. Any departure therefrom would lead only to indiscipline and anarchy. The High Courts cannot ignore Article 141 of the Constitution which clearly states, that the law declared by this Court is binding on all Courts within the territory of India. As observed by the Court in para 28 of the State of West Bengal and others vs. Shivananda Pathak and others reported in 1998 (5) SCC 513:-
“If a judgment is overruled by the higher court, the judicial discipline requires that the judge whose judgment is overruled must submit to that judgment. He cannot, in the same proceedings or in collateral proceedings between the same parties, rewrite the overruled judgment “
In the same vein, it may stated that when the judgment of a Court is confirmed by the higher court, the judicial discipline requires that Court to accept that judgment, and it should not in collateral proceedings write a judgment contrary to the confirmed judgment. The Court referred to the observations of Krishna Iyer, J. in Fuzlunbi vs. K. Khader Vali and another reported in 1980 (4) SCC 125:-
“………No judge in India, except a larger Bench of the Supreme court, without a departure from judicial discipline can whittle down, wish away or be unbound by the ratio of the judgment of the Supreme Court.”
Bihar State Govt. Secondary School Teachers Association vs. Bihar Education Service Association AIR 2013 SC 487
