Administrative Authority

Matter involved seriously disputed and contentious questions of facts, including but not limited to ownership of subject land, legality of possession, existence of alleged village, applicability of 2008 policy and competing claims of different respondents

Petitioners and authorities had taken divergent factual stands which could not be resolved without recording of evidence

Disputed questions of fact, particularly those requiring evidence, examination of documents and determination of title or possession cannot be adjudicated in Constitutional jurisdiction under Art.199 of the Constitution

Constitutional Court does not function as a Trial Court to resolve factual controversies or to conduct roving inquiries

High Court declined to interfere in the matter as declaration of entitlement, regularization of land and issuance of lease involved exercise of statutory and administrative functions by competent authorities and the same could not be substituted by Constitutional Court in absence of clear violation of law or mala fide exercise of power established on admitted facts

Constitutional petition was dismissed, in circumstances.

Structuring of discretion only means regularizing it, organizing it, producing order in it so that the decision will achieve the high quality of justice

Exercise of discretionary powers without framing rules to regulate its exercise has always been taken to the enhancement of power and where the authorities fail to rationalize and regulate their discretion by rules or precedents the courts have to intervene where exercise of such discretionary power appears to be arbitrary and capricious.

Administrative authority had to exercise discretion by applying an independent mind uninfluenced by irrelevant or extraneous considerations.

Every departmental authority, high or low, and for that matter the State/Government functionaries, must follow the law and should not be led by their own whims and fancies and wishful thinking.

(c) Administrative authority-Not completely immune from judicial scrutiny-Such Tribunals under obligation to observe elementary and essential principles of fairness when they take decisions after ex post facto investigation into facts resulting in consequences affecting a person adversely.

Court can make an enquiry and declare order of such authority to be void if such circumstances are not found to exist-Special Judicial Tribunals-Not judge: of facts which are foundation of their jurisdiction - Civil Court's jurisdi5ction with respect to mala fides can never be taken away.