The Kerala High Court has imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on the state government for the delayed filing of an appeal against a single judge’s order concerning the Challenge Fund Scheme. Justices Amit Rawal and Easwaran S described the appeal as “wholly atrocious, fallacious, repugnant, and aberrative,” expressing frustration over the state’s procrastination which began only after a contempt notice was issued.
The controversy centers around the implementation of the Challenge Fund Scheme, which offers compensation covering 50% of the construction costs incurred by private schools. The scheme specifies that only those schools that commenced construction or renovation post-March 1, 2018, are eligible for benefits.
In this specific case, an Ernakulam-based school completed its construction and received the occupancy certificate in March 2019. Although the government had deposited Rs 50 lakh as its share of the construction costs into the government treasury, the funds were withheld due to a discrepancy over the construction’s start date.
The state’s delayed reaction came to the fore when, despite the high court’s directive on March 13, 2024, to reconsider the construction costs post-March 1, 2018, no action was taken until the school filed a contempt plea. This prompted the government to finally challenge the initial ruling, a move the court found to be not only tardy but also lacking in legal prudence.
Senior Advocate Jaju Babu, representing the school, highlighted that the government’s appeal was reactive, following the contempt notice, thereby undermining the judicial process and delaying the resolution of the matter.
Dismissing the state’s appeal, the court ordered the Rs 2 lakh penalty be paid directly to the affected school and subsequently recovered from the legal officers responsible for the decision to file the writ appeal.
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The bench emphasized the principle that parties must approach the court with clean hands, warning that failure to do so can result in dismissal of the plea at any stage of the trial, accompanied by exemplary costs.
