Gauhati High Court
Page No.# 1/4 vs Ashok Kumar Agarwalla on 31 October, 2025
Author: Devashis Baruah
Bench: Devashis Baruah
Page No.# 1/4
2022:GAU-AS:14365
GAHC010130802025
2025:GAU-AS:14748
THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT
(HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
Case No. : Review.Pet./135/2025
THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 4 ORS
REPRESENTED BY THE SECY. TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM, WATER
RESOURCES DEPTT., DISPUR, GUWAHATI 781006, ASSAM.
2: THE CHIEF ENGINEER
WATER RESOURCES DEPTT.
CHANDMARI
GUWAHATI 03
ASSAM.
3: THE ADDL. CHIEF ENGINEER
LOWER ASSAM ZONE WATER RESOURCES DEPTT.
GOVT. OF ASSAM
CHANDMARI
GUWAHATI 03
ASSAM.
4: THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER
WATER RESOURCES DEPTT.
GOVT. OF ASSAM
CHANDMARI
GUWAHATI 3
ASSAM.
5: THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER
DHEMAJI WATER RESOURCES DIVISION
UNDER WATER RESOURCES DEPTT.
GOVT. OF DHEMAJI
ASSAM
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2022:GAU-AS:14365
VERSUS
ASHOK KUMAR AGARWALLA
S/O LT. SURAJMAL AGARWALLA, R/O FLAT NO. 202, MAHABIR
APARTMENT USHA GALI, A.T. ROAD, BHARALUMUKH, GUWAHATI 781009,
KAMRUP (M), ASSAM.
BEFORE
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE DEVASHIS BARUAH
Advocates for the petitioner(s) : Ms. R Deka
Advocates for the respondent(s) :
Date of hearing & judgment :31.10.2025
JUDGMENT & ORDER(ORAL)
Heard Ms. R. Deka, the learned counsel appearing on behalf of the review
petitioners.
2. The present review application has been filed challenging the common order
dated 27.09.2022 passed in WP(C) No.6596/2019 whereby the learned
Coordinate Bench of this Court after hearing the learned counsel for the parties
in the said writ petition along with the batch of connected writ petitions passed
the following order:-
"(1) Within 15 (fifteen) days from today, the concerned official of the
State Government of Assam will communicate the supplementary budget
passed in the last Assembly Session pertaining to the scheme to the
competent authority of the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India.
(2) Within 60 (sixty) days from the date of receipt of such
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communication, the Ministry of Jal Shakti to release the amount due under
the schemes to the concerned Department of the Government of Assam.
(3) Upon receipt of the amount, bills of the writ petitioners shall be
processed and cleared within a further period of 45 days.
In view of the directions issued herein above, the respondents to
complete the entire process within a period of four months from today.
A copy of this order be furnished to Mr. B. Goswami, learned Addl.
Advocate General, Assam and Mr. R. K. Dev Choudhury, learned DSGI.
The written instructions dated 26.09.2022 be kept as a part of the
record of this case.
All these writ petitions stand disposed of accordingly."
3. By referring to the order dated 27.09.2022, Ms. R. Deka, the learned
counsel appearing on behalf of the review petitioners has argued that the
review petition arises out of the common order dated 27.09.2022 passed in the
connected writ petitions wherein, the Ministry of Jal Shakti was not made a
party.
4. Contending that the pending bills could not be cleared by the State of
Assam due to non-receipt of the share of contribution coming from the Ministry
of Jal Shakti, Union of India, Ms. R. Deka, the learned counsel for the review
petitioners submits that these writ petitions are required to be heard afresh
after serving notice upon the Ministry of Jal Shakti. Ms. R. Deka, the learned
counsel for the review petitioners has, however, candidly submitted that the
order dated 27.09.2022 passed by this Court even in respect of those writ
petitions where the Ministry of Jal Shakti was impleaded as party, has not been
complied with till today.
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5. Be that as it may, this Court finds that by the order dated 27.09.2022
direction was also issued to the Ministry of Jal Shakti to release the amount due
under the scheme. The Ministry of Jal Shakti was duly represented by Mr. RK.
Dev Choudhury, learned Deputy Solicitor General of India, but no objection was
raised by the learned counsel for the respondents on the ground of non-joinder
of necessary party. Moreover, the said Ministry has also not sought any review
of the order.
6. It was for the petitioners to implead the Ministry of Jal Shakti and if they
had failed to do so resulting in a situation where the order dated 27.09.2022
cannot be implemented on technical grounds, even then, it would be for the
writ petitioners to face the consequences. The same cannot, however, be a
ground for this Court to review/ recall the order dated 27.09.2022, which was
passed by this Court after hearing the learned counsel for the parties including
the Deputy Solicitor General of India representing the Ministry of Jal Shakti in
the Union of India as well as the Brahmaputra Board.
7. For the reasons stated herein above, this Court does not find any good
ground to review the order dated 27.09.2022.
8. Consequently, the Review Petition is held to be devoid of any merit. The
same is accordingly, dismissed.
JUDGE
Comparing Assistant
