“Private Agenda”: Chhattisgarh High Court Dismisses PIL Seeking Release Of Sanctioned Amount Of ₹20 Lakh For 'Malhar Mahotsav'

In this regard, a Division Bench the High Court comprising Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Arvind Kumar Verma, held,

“…it is a private agenda and private motive of the petitioners, which cannot be termed as a public interest litigation and also considering that PILs primarily germinated in the idea of providing access to justice to all, especially those deemed by society to be voiceless and not for private cause or for private agenda/motive, we do not find any good ground for interference…”

Background

Initially, the Hon'ble Chief Minister of State of Chhattisgarh, on November 23, 2024, during his visit to Bilaspur, had announced an increment of grant for Malhar Mahotsav from Rs.5 lakhs to Rs.20 lakhs in order to support the festival's revival. The Central Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs further recommended the enhancement of the festival's grant, post which the Department of Culture and Official Language issued a sanction letter. However, the amount was not provided citing reasons related to the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) owing to local body elections. While the elections had been concluded and the MCC had been lifted, no action was taken by the respondents. Accordingly, a PIL was filed demanding release of the sanctioned amount, and subsequently to restrain the Collector's office from interfering with the festival's management and allow the petitioners' organisation, as per past practices, to conduct the event.

It was the case of the petitioner that the delay in sanctioning the amount jeopardised the timely execution of the festival which was scheduled for March 29, 30, and 31, 2025. Additionally, it was submitted that it is the duty of the State to protect the cultural programme and the inaction on the part of the respondents would not only result in an irreparable damage to the public of Malhar, a site of immense historical significance in Chhattisgarh, and undermine its cultural heritage, but also violate the petitioners' legitimate expectations and the constitutional rights guaranteed under Articles 14 and 19 of the Constitution of India.

On the other hand, the respondents argued that the said issue was not a public cause and was driven primarily by the private agenda of the petitioner.

Findings

The Court asserted that the duty of ensuring that there is no personal gain, private motive and oblique notice behind filing of PIL lies with the Court and in order to maintain the sanctity of PIL, the Courts must encourage genuine and bonafide PIL and effectively discourage those filed for extraneous considerations. In this aspect, the Court further observed,

“The Courts, while exercising jurisdiction and deciding a public interest litigation, have to take great care, primarily, for the reason that wide jurisdiction should not become a source of abuse of process of law by the disgruntled litigant. Such careful exercise is also necessary to ensure that the litigation is genuine, not motivated by extraneous considerations and imposes an obligation upon the litigant to disclose true facts and approach the Court with clean hands. Thus, it is imperative that the petitions, which are bona fide and in public interest alone, be entertained in this category. Abuse of process of law is essentially opposed to any public interest. One who abuses the process of law, cannot be said to serve any public interest, much less, a larger public interest.”

Considering the above observation, the Court noted that the petition was premised on a private agenda and private motive and did not involve any issue of public interest that could invoke the jurisdiction of the Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. Accordingly, the Court dismissed the PIL.

Case Details:

Case Number: WPPIL No. 41 of 2025

Case Title: Bilaspur Lokhit Sanskritik Seva Samiti, Malhar v. State Of Chhattisgarh

Date: 02.04.2025

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