The first bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy made the observation while dismissing an appeal pertaining to the issuance of show-cause notice by a bank and the writ court imposing a cost of Rs 10,000 while dismissing the plea.

Pointing out that it was elementary that a charge-sheet or a show-cause notice cannot be interfered with by the court unless it has been issued without jurisdiction and completely baseless even to the meanest mind, the bench led by the Chief Justice said, “The basis for the principle is that a show-cause notice or a charge-sheet does not cause any prejudice to the recipient, as the recipient has an opportunity to make a representation there against.”

Oftentimes, exuberant litigants jump the gun and rush to the court at the first available opportunity without completing the usual course of things before the appropriate authorities, Chief Justice Banerjee said. He also noted that it was not the writ petitioner’s case that there was a breach of the principles of natural justice. After all, only a show-cause notice or a charge-sheet has been issued, he pointed out.

Regarding the cost imposed, the Chief Justice took strong exception to an array of such pleas flooding the court. “A message has to be sent loud and clear that frivolous litigation would not be tolerated. It is because of the frivolous litigation that the system has clogged up. It is time that appropriate costs are awarded to reward dishonest and luxury litigants so that they are warned of their course of action in future,” he said.

“The appellant is not burdened with further costs that he rightly deserves,” the bench added.