High Court Shields CGRF Independence: No “Unilateral Exit” for Members with Satisfactory Service
Case No: W.P.(S) No. 4891 of 2025
By Sandhya kaika
In a landmark ruling aimed at preserving the impartiality of consumer dispute bodies, the Jharkhand High Court has quashed JBVNL’s attempt to bypass the extension of sitting Technical Members. The Court ruled that the term “extendable” in the JSERC Regulations is mandatory rather than discretionary, provided the member’s service is satisfactory.
The petitioners, Technical Members of the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF), challenged JBVNL’s Advertisement No. 03/2025, which sought fresh recruits for their positions without evaluating their current performance. JBVNL argued that extension is a “pleasure” of the licensee and not a vested right.
Justice Ananda Sen emphasized that since CGRFs adjudicate disputes against JBVNL, giving the utility “unbridled power” to terminate members at will would destroy the Forum’s independence.
The Court interpreted Clause 4.2(2) of the JSERC Regulations 2020 to mean that if a member’s service is satisfactory, an extension of two years (up to age 65) is a matter of course.
A licensee cannot unilaterally “close the tenure” or issue fresh advertisements without first conducting a performance evaluation.
The High Court set aside Advertisement No. 03/2025. JBVNL is now directed to evaluate the petitioners’ performance; fresh recruitment can only proceed if their service is found to be officially unsatisfactory.
