Case Note & Summary
The Kerala State Electricity Board filed a review petition under Article 137 of the Constitution of India against a judgment dated December 17, 2002, which had set aside a Kerala High Court order and partly allowed an appeal by Hitech Electrothermics & Hydropower Ltd. The respondent claimed benefits under the Industrial Policy of the Government of Kerala for concessional tariff and electricity duty, asserting that delays in commencing commercial production were due to the Electricity Board's inaction. The High Court had dismissed the respondent's writ petition, stating that the respondent did not start production before the cut-off date specified in the policy. The Supreme Court, while examining the appeal, acknowledged the respondent's claims but ultimately upheld the policy's stipulations regarding the cut-off date for commercial production. The court found that the respondent had been denied timely power supply, which prevented it from commencing production on time, and granted a limited relief of concessional tariff for three years instead of five. In the review petition, the Electricity Board argued that the previous judgment was based on a misinterpretation of the evidence. However, the Supreme Court concluded that the review petition lacked merit, as it could not re-evaluate evidence or findings of fact in a review context. The court emphasized that no error apparent on the record was demonstrated, leading to the dismissal of the review petition.
Headnote
A) Constitutional Law - Review Petition - Grounds for Review - Article 137 of the Constitution of India - The review petition was dismissed as no error apparent on the face of the record was found, and the court reiterated that it cannot re-appreciate evidence in a review petition. The court emphasized that findings of fact recorded in the previous judgment were based on evidence and could not be contested in a review (Paras 1-5).
Issue of Consideration
Whether the review petition should be allowed based on the arguments presented regarding the previous judgment.
Final Decision
The Supreme Court dismissed the review petition, stating that there was no error apparent on the face of the record and reaffirmed that it could not re-evaluate evidence in a review context.
Law Points
- Review petitions
- Article 137
- Industrial Policy
- concessional tariff
- commercial production
- evidence appreciation
