Quashing of Criminal Proceedings: Food Safety – Superseding Referral Report

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The case of Raghu Vakkiyal v. State of Himachal Pradesh involves the quashing of criminal proceedings related to the alleged sale of unsafe Maggi Noodles by M/s Nestle India Pvt.Ltd..

Factual Background

In June 2015, a Food Safety Officer sampled Maggi Noodles from Nestle’s premises in Una, Himachal Pradesh. A private laboratory in Panchkula analyzed the samples and reported that the lead content exceeded the permissible limit of 2.5 ppm, declaring the product unsafe for human consumption. Based on this, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Una sanctioned prosecution, and criminal complaints were filed in 2016.

The High Court’s Findings

Justice Sandeep Sharma quashed the complaints and subsequent proceedings based on several critical legal and procedural failures:

  • Superseding Referral Report: The court noted that in a related national class-action suit, the Supreme Court had ordered testing by the Referral Laboratory (CFTRI Mysore), which found Maggi samples to be within safe limits. Under Section 46(4) of the Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Act, a report from a Referral Laboratory supersedes all earlier reports from state or private labs.
  • Lack of Proper Accreditation: The court found that the laboratory in Panchkula used for the initial analysis was not NABL accredited to test for lead. Furthermore, its FSSAI notification had lapsed before the analysis was conducted, making its findings legally invalid.
  • Failure to Prosecute the Company: The prosecution targeted the petitioner as a nominee but failed to array M/s Nestle India Limited as an accused. Citing the AneetaHada precedent, the court held that prosecuting a company official without the company itself is unsustainable under the doctrine of vicarious liability.
  • Invalid Sanction: The sanction for prosecution was issued by the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), whereas Section 42 of the FSS Act mandates that only the Commissioner of Food Safety has the authority to grant such sanction.
  • Statutory Bar of Limitation: Under Section 77 of the Act, a court must take cognizance within one year of the offense. In this case, the trial court took cognizance nearly two years after the samples were analyzed, without any written extension from the Commissioner.

Conclusion

The High Court concluded that the proceedings were void ab initio and “manifestly attended with mala fide”. The complaints and summoning orders were quashed, and the petitioner was discharged.

STPL (Web) 2026 HP 189

Raghu Vakkiyal V. State of Himachal Pradesh (D.O.J. 18.04.2026)

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Quashing of Criminal Proceedings: Food Safety – Superseding Referral Report

May 7, 2026 No Comments

The case of Raghu Vakkiyal v. State of Himachal Pradesh involves the quashing of criminal proceedings related to the alleged sale of unsafe Maggi Noodles by M/s Nestle India Pvt.Ltd..

Factual Background

In June 2015, a Food Safety Officer sampled Maggi Noodles from Nestle’s premises in Una, Himachal Pradesh. A private laboratory in Panchkula analyzed the samples and reported that the lead content exceeded the permissible limit of 2.5 ppm, declaring the product unsafe for human consumption. Based on this, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Una sanctioned prosecution, and criminal complaints were filed in 2016.

The High Court’s Findings

Justice Sandeep Sharma quashed the complaints and subsequent proceedings based on several critical legal and procedural failures:

  • Superseding Referral Report: The court noted that in a related national class-action suit, the Supreme Court had ordered testing by the Referral Laboratory (CFTRI Mysore), which found Maggi samples to be within safe limits. Under Section 46(4) of the Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Act, a report from a Referral Laboratory supersedes all earlier reports from state or private labs.
  • Lack of Proper Accreditation: The court found that the laboratory in Panchkula used for the initial analysis was not NABL accredited to test for lead. Furthermore, its FSSAI notification had lapsed before the analysis was conducted, making its findings legally invalid.
  • Failure to Prosecute the Company: The prosecution targeted the petitioner as a nominee but failed to array M/s Nestle India Limited as an accused. Citing the AneetaHada precedent, the court held that prosecuting a company official without the company itself is unsustainable under the doctrine of vicarious liability.
  • Invalid Sanction: The sanction for prosecution was issued by the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), whereas Section 42 of the FSS Act mandates that only the Commissioner of Food Safety has the authority to grant such sanction.
  • Statutory Bar of Limitation: Under Section 77 of the Act, a court must take cognizance within one year of the offense. In this case, the trial court took cognizance nearly two years after the samples were analyzed, without any written extension from the Commissioner.

Conclusion

The High Court concluded that the proceedings were void ab initio and “manifestly attended with mala fide”. The complaints and summoning orders were quashed, and the petitioner was discharged.

STPL (Web) 2026 HP 189

Raghu Vakkiyal V. State of Himachal Pradesh (D.O.J. 18.04.2026)

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Service Law: Demotion Claim for More Service Benifits

May 7, 2026 No Comments

The case of Raj Kumar v. State of Himachal Pradesh involves a retired official’s attempt to retrospectively claim Class-IV status to benefit from a higher retirement age and additional service credits for pension purposes.

Factual Background

  • Service History: The petitioner began as a part-time Water Carrier in 2002, moved to daily wages in 2012, and was regularized as a Class-IV employee in 2017.
  • Promotion: In March 2022, he was promoted to Laboratory Attendant, a Class-III post.
  • Retirement: He retired at the age of 58 in March 2025 as a Class-III employee and began receiving a pension based on the higher wages associated with that rank.

The Petitioner’s Claims

The petitioner sought a “strange” relief from the Court, asking to have his Class-III service treated as Class-IV service. His goal was twofold:

  1. Extended Service: To benefit from the Baldev judgment, which sets the retirement age for Class-IV employees at 60 years rather than the 58 years applicable to Class-III.
  2. Service Credits: To merge his daily wage service with his regular service to enhance his pensionary benefits.

The High Court’s Findings

Justice Ajay Mohan Goel dismissed the petition, characterizing it as “misconceived” and an “abuse of the process of law”. The Court’s reasoning included:

  • Finality of Promotion: The Court held that once the petitioner accepted a promotion to Class-III, received the associated higher wages without protest, and retired at the age of 58, he could not later ask to be “downgraded” just to gain two extra years of service.
  • Misapplication of Precedents: While cases like Balo Devi and Sunder Singh allow for the counting of daily wage service to meet pension eligibility thresholds, they do not permit an employee to nullify their Class-III status to claim Class-IV retirement benefits.
  • Systemic Stability: The Court warned that allowing such a request would open a “Pandora’s box” of litigation, as many retired Class-III employees might attempt to claim Class-IV benefits to extend their service.
  • Equitable Balance: Since the petitioner was already drawing a pension based on his higher Class-III salary, he was not entitled to the specific age-based benefits reserved for the Class-IV cadre.

Conclusion: The Court affirmed that employees must abide by the service norms of the cadre they belong to at the time of retirement. The petition was dismissed without costs.

STPL (Web) 2026 HP 188

Raj Kumar V. State of Himachal Pradesh And Others (D.O.J. 20.04.2026)

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Service Law: Compassionate Appointment – Unmarried Daughter Subsequent marriage not disqualify

May 7, 2026 No Comments

The case of Shyama Kumari v. State of Himachal Pradesh establishes that an unmarried daughter’s eligibility for a compassionate appointment is determined as of the date of her application, and her subsequent marriage does not disqualify her from service.

Factual Background

  • The Application: The petitioner’s father, a regular Peon, died in July 2020. In June 2021, while she was unmarried, the petitioner applied for a compassionate appointment.
  • The Marriage: She solemnized her marriage on July 25, 2021, shortly after applying.
  • The Rejection: In August 2022, the state offered her an appointment with a condition (Condition No. 15) requiring her to produce a marital status certificate at the time of joining. When she later requested maternity leave, the authority rejected her joining on the grounds that she had submitted a “fake certificate” of being unmarried and failed to meet the joining conditions.

The High Court’s Findings

Justice Ajay Mohan Goel quashed the rejection, ruling that the Department’s actions were discriminatory and legally flawed:

  • Eligibility is Fixed at Application: The court held that a candidate’s credentials must be evaluated based on the date they applied for the post. If a daughter is unmarried at the time of application, she remains eligible even if she marries before the Department finally processes the appointment.
  • Gender Discrimination: The court observed that if an unmarried son had married between his application and his appointment, the Department would not have cancelled his joining. Discriminating against a daughter in the same situation is unconstitutional.
  • Procedural Fairness: The court noted that a daughter cannot be expected to “wait for years and years” for an appointment without getting married.
  • Correction of “Fake Certificate” Claim: The court found that the Department’s allegation of a “fake certificate” was incorrect because the petitioner was unmarried when she applied and when the initial certificates were issued.
  • Reading Down Appointment Conditions: The court “read down” the requirement for a marital status certificate at the time of joining, ruling that such certificates must relate back to the date of application rather than the date of joining.

Conclusion

The Court allowed the petition, directing that the petitioner be treated as appointed from her original joining date in September 2022. She was granted all consequential benefits, including monetary benefits and seniority.

STPL (Web) 2026 HP 187

Shyama Kumari V. State of Himachal Pradesh And Others (D.O.J. 20.04.2026)

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Limitation: Government Agencies & Banks are not exempt from Diligent Pursuit of Legal Remedies

May 7, 2026 No Comments

The case of Jogindra Central Co-operative Bank Limited v. M/S Himachal Aluminium Company Ltd. &Ors.centers on the legal requirements for the condonation of delay under the Limitation Act and the principle that government agencies and banks are not exempt from the diligent pursuit of legal remedies.

Core Legal Principle

Bureaucratic red tape, internal file movements, and the need for multiple layers of institutional approval do not constitute “sufficient cause” for legal delays. The Law of Limitation binds all parties equally, including government bodies and their instrumentalities, and should not be relaxed simply because an appellant is an impersonal machinery.

Factual Background

  • The Initial Delay: The petitioner Bank sought to appeal a judgment of acquittal dated March 28, 2014.
  • The Wrong Forum: Based on “wrong advice,” the Bank initially filed an appeal in the Sessions Court instead of the High Court. Realizing this mistake, they withdrew that appeal on November 2, 2017.
  • The Unexplained Gap: After receiving the necessary court orders in February 2018, the Bank waited until January 2019 to apply for a certified copy of the original trial court judgment.
  • The Total Delay: By the time the appeal reached the High Court, there was a total delay of 4 years, 4 months, and 24 days.

The High Court’s Reasoning

Justice Vivek Singh Thakur dismissed the application for condonation of delay based on the following findings:

  • Lack of Diligence: While the time spent in the wrong forum could be considered under Section 14 of the Limitation Act, the Bank failed to explain the one-year gap between withdrawing the first appeal and filing the second.
  • Rejection of Bureaucratic Excuses: The Bank argued that the “cumbersome exercise” of obtaining legal opinions and internal approvals across different levels of management consumed the intervening year. The Court rejected this, stating that “inherited bureaucratic methodology” is not an acceptable explanation in an era of modern technology.
  • Binding Precedent: The Court relied on the Supreme Court ruling in ***Postmaster General v. Living Media India Ltd.***, which established that condonation of delay is an exception, not an anticipated benefit for government departments.
  • Equality Before Law: The Court emphasized that the law “shelters everyone under the same light” and must not be “swirled for the benefit of a few”.

Conclusion

The Court concluded that the Bank was guilty of grave negligence rather than being prevented by a genuine sufficient cause. Consequently, the application for condonation of delay was dismissed, and the criminal appeal was subsequently rejected.

STPL (Web) 2026 HP 186

Jogindra Central Co-Operative Bank Limited. V. M/S Himachal Aluminium Company Ltd. &Ors. (D.O.J. 17.04.2026)

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