In a major ruling on Thursday, the Supreme Court of India quashed the Allahabad High Court’s direction ordering a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged irregularities in the recruitment process of staff in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council and Assembly. The top court observed that mere suspicion or assumptions cannot justify transferring investigations to a central agency.
“The High Court’s order was based on doubt and assumption without a factual foundation,” the bench remarked, emphasizing that such extraordinary powers must be used “sparingly and with great caution.”
Background
The controversy began in 2021 when candidates challenged the recruitment process under Advertisement No. 1/2020 for various posts in the UP Legislative Council Secretariat. The petitioners alleged favoritism and collusion by private recruitment agencies.
A single judge of the Allahabad High Court in April 2023 held that future recruitments should be handled by the Uttar Pradesh Subordinate Services Selection Commission (UPSSSC) instead of private agencies, to maintain transparency.
However, during appeals and subsequent hearings, the High Court’s Division Bench went a step further. On September 18, 2023, it ordered a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) and directed the CBI to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the recruitment. The decision was reiterated even after review petitions were dismissed on October 3, 2023.
This prompted the Legislative Council and the State of Uttar Pradesh to move the Supreme Court, contending that the High Court had “crossed its jurisdiction” by ordering a CBI inquiry without any formal plea or supporting material.
Court’s Observations
Justice J.K. Maheshwari, delivering the judgment for the bench also comprising Justice Vijay Bishnoi, traced a series of precedents-State of West Bengal vs. Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights (2010) and Secretary, Minor Irrigation vs. Sahngoo Ram (2002) among others-to underline that a CBI probe cannot be ordered as a matter of routine.
“The very plenitude of power requires great caution,” the bench said, reiterating that the High Court must have concrete material before concluding that a CBI inquiry is necessary.
The judgment stressed that courts should intervene only in “exceptional situations”-for instance, when there is a clear prima facie case of wrongdoing, systemic failure, or when state machinery appears compromised.
The bench noted pointedly, “The Division Bench acted merely on a doubt about the recruitment agency’s data, without identifying any prima facie offence.” It further recorded that even the original petitioners never sought a CBI probe.
Decision
Setting aside the High Court’s orders dated September 18 and October 3, 2023, the Supreme Court allowed all appeals filed by the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council and State government.
The top court directed the Division Bench of the Allahabad High Court to hear the pending Special Appeal Defective No. 485 of 2023 purely on its merits, without being influenced by the earlier directions for CBI inquiry.
The bench also annulled the High Court’s move to convert the appeal into a suo motu PIL. It left it to the Chief Justice of the High Court to decide whether such matters could be separately registered in line with court rules.
With this, the apex court reaffirmed judicial restraint in invoking central investigations, observing that such powers must remain “a measure of last resort.”
Case: Legislative Council U.P. Lucknow & Ors. vs. Sushil Kumar & Ors.
Case Type: Civil Appeal (arising out of SLP (C) Nos. 22746, 22726, 22970–71 of 2023 & 457 of 2024)
Citation: 2025 INSC 1241
Appellants: Legislative Council, U.P. Lucknow & the State of Uttar Pradesh
Respondents: Sushil Kumar & Ors., Vipin Kumar & Ors.
Judgment Date: October 16, 2025