Executive Policy cannot be rewritten in Writ Jurisdiction, says High Court

Recently, the Madras High Court stepped in to examine whether a court can broaden the scope of a government scheme beyond its notified eligibility criteria. The case centred on the Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme and a rejected claim for benefits based on income limits, raising a larger question, can courts rewrite executive policy in the name of equity?

The controversy began when a woman’s application under the State’s Marriage Assistance Scheme was rejected after her income certificate, issued by the Zonal Deputy Tahsildar, recorded her annual income at Rs.1,08,000, translating to Rs.9,000 per month, above the scheme’s ceiling of Rs.6,000 per month. She moved a writ petition contending that she was in fact earning within the permissible limit.

However, while examining her plea, the Single Judge went a step further and directed that the benefit of the scheme should extend to persons earning minimum wages, effectively enlarging the policy’s coverage. Challenging this, the State argued that the writ court had exceeded its jurisdiction, as the policy itself was never under challenge and no prayer had been made to widen its scope.

The Division Bench agreed with the State, holding that the direction of the Single Judge amounted to judicial overreach. Emphasising the narrow scope of interference in executive policy, the Court observed that extending benefits to a larger class “is only in the realm of the executive function and could not be ordered in exercise of judicial power under Article 226.” It noted that the petitioner’s claim hinged solely on proving that her income was within the prescribed limit and that without first invalidating the income certificate, no such relief could have been granted.

Consequently, the appeal was allowed and the Single Judge’s order was set aside. The Court, however, clarified that if the petitioner succeeds in getting her income certificate revised upon fresh inquiry and establishes eligibility during the scheme’s operation, she may still claim the benefit.