Gujarat High Court
Maheshkumar Jayantilal Patani vs State Of Gujarat on 14 October, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/11779/2025 JUDGMENT DATED: 14/10/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 11779 of 2025
FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:
HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE M. K. THAKKER
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Approved for Reporting Yes No
✔
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MAHESHKUMAR JAYANTILAL PATANI
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ORS.
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Appearance:
SENIOR ADVOCATE MR.SHALIN MEHTA assisted by BHAVYARAJ K
GOHIL(8806) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
MR.ADITYA DAVDA, AGP for the Respondent(s) No. 1,2,3
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE M. K. THAKKER
Date : 14/10/2025
ORAL JUDGMENT
1. Rule returnable forthwith. Learned AGP Mr.Aditya Davda waives service of notice of Rule on behalf of respondent-State.
2. The present petition has been filed seeking the following reliefs:-
"10. In view of above the Hon'ble Court may be pleased to issue writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ, order or Page 1 of 5 Uploaded by MRS. NIVYA ABHAY NAIR(HC01901) on Wed Oct 15 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Oct 16 01:53:37 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/11779/2025 JUDGMENT DATED: 14/10/2025 undefined direction in the nature of writ and thereby:-
A. Your Lordship be pleased to hold and declare that the decision of the Superintendent of Police, Surat dated 03.10.2011 declaring the petitioner disqualified on the ground of color blindness, annexed at Annexure-D, is manifestly arbitrary, illegal and in violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India; B. Your Lordship be pleased to quash and set aside the impugned order dated 03.10.2011 annexed at Annexure-D, passed by the Superintendent of Police, Surat, declaring the petitioner disqualified on the ground of color blindness; C. Your Lordship be pleased to direct the respondent to appoint the petitioner to the post of Lok Rakshak with effect from the date when the person below them in select list were appointed with all consequential benefits.
D. Your Lordship be pleased to hold and declare that in view of the orders passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India and the Hon'ble High Court of Gujarat in the cases of similarly situated candidates, annexed at Annexures- M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T and U, the petitioner is entitled to parity of treatment, and denial thereof would be violative of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India.
E. To pass any other and further reliefs that may be deemed fit and proper and in the interest of Justice and Equity."
3. Heard learned Senior Advocate Mr. Shalin Mehta, assisted by learned Advocate Mr. Bhavyaraj Gohil, appearing for the petitioner, and learned AGP Mr. Aditya Davda, appearing for the respondent-State. Page 2 of 5 Uploaded by MRS. NIVYA ABHAY NAIR(HC01901) on Wed Oct 15 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Oct 16 01:53:37 IST 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/11779/2025 JUDGMENT DATED: 14/10/2025 undefined
4. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Mehta submits that although in the earlier round of litigation, the petition was dismissed on the ground of delay and was subsequently affirmed by the Division Bench in an intra- court appeal and thereafter by the Apex Court, subsequent to the dismissal of the Special Leave Petition (SLP), several similarly situated employees have approached this Court, and orders have been passed in their favour, which have also been upheld by the Hon'ble Supreme Court. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Mehta further submits that the earlier petition was dismissed solely on the ground of delay, without examination of the merits of the case. Therefore, the present petition deserves to be entertained, and the petitioner is entitled to the same relief as has been granted to other similarly situated employees.
5. Per contra, learned AGP Mr.Davda submits that once the petition was dismissed and such dismissal was affirmed up to the Hon'ble Supreme Court, it is not open for this Court to reopen an issue that has already attained finality. Learned AGP Mr.Davda further contends that entertaining such petitions would set a precedent, Page 3 of 5 Uploaded by MRS. NIVYA ABHAY NAIR(HC01901) on Wed Oct 15 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Oct 16 01:53:37 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/11779/2025 JUDGMENT DATED: 14/10/2025 undefined enabling numerous other employees to raise similar grievances on the ground that identically situated employees have been granted relief, despite their own claims having been previously rejected on grounds such as delay. In view of the above, learned AGP Mr. Davda prays for dismissal of the present petition.
6. Having considered the submissions advanced by the learned advocates for the respective parties, it emerges from the record that in the earlier round of litigation, wherein the petitioner had approached this Court by filing Special Civil Application No. 12147 of 2019, the petition was not entertained by this Court on the ground of delay, with detailed reasons assigned in the order. It further appears that the said order was challenged by way of an appeal before the Division Bench of this Court, which also came to be dismissed by judgment and order dated 06.08.2020. Thereafter, the Hon'ble Supreme Court, vide order dated 06.05.2024, dismissed the Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the present petitioner, thereby affirming the orders passed by this Court.
7. In the aforesaid background, this Court is of the Page 4 of 5 Uploaded by MRS. NIVYA ABHAY NAIR(HC01901) on Wed Oct 15 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Oct 16 01:53:37 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/11779/2025 JUDGMENT DATED: 14/10/2025 undefined considered opinion that it is not open for the present petitioner to seek the relief which has already been declined by this Court in the earlier round of litigation, and which has attained finality. Accordingly, the petition does not merit consideration and is liable to be dismissed.
8. Resultantly, this petition is dismissed.
9. Rule is discharged.
(M. K. THAKKER,J) NIVYA A. NAIR Page 5 of 5 Uploaded by MRS. NIVYA ABHAY NAIR(HC01901) on Wed Oct 15 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Oct 16 01:53:37 IST 2025