Orissa HC imposes Rs 10,000 fine on doctor for false claim of Padma Shri award

Cuttack: Observing that the writ petition unnecessarily wasted valuable time of the court, the Orissa High Court dismissed a petition filed by a doctor, also a writer who claimed that he was unfairly denied the country's fourth highest civilian honour- Padma Shri Award in the field of literature and imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 for wasting the court's time. 

The petitioner claimed that another person with the same name from Dhenkanal district falsely claimed to be the Padmashri Awardee, which was meant to be his award, as his name was included in the Padma Shri awardee list declared on January 25, 2023. 

He told the court that he had received a phone call from the Ministry of Home Affairs informing him about his selection for the award. He also said he had written 29 books in Odia and deserved the recognition, while the other person, who is a journalist, had not written any books.

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However, the court found that Mishra failed to provide any proof showing he was selected for the award. Despite being given time, he could not submit any official documents or confirmation.

Single bench of Justice S.K. Panigrahi observed, "Considering the facts and submissions made, this Court is of the view that the Petitioner has approached this Court on the basis of some phone calls from somebody stating that he is the recipient of the “Padmashri Award” for the year 2023 in the field of Literature. Despite a few adjournments were granted to the Petitioner to place on record all the documents which embolden his claim, the Petitioner has failed to submit any document where his name has been figured as a “Padmashri Awardee”. This shows that the Petitioner has unnecessarily created controversy and also demeaned the prestige of the award and tried to malign the image of the Opposite Party No.2." 

Dismissing the petition, the court imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on the petitioner and asked him to pay the amount to the Orissa High Court Bar Association, Cuttack within a period of 10 days. The money will be used for purchasing books by the Bar.

"In such view of the matter, this Court deems it appropriate to impose a cost of Rs.10,000/- (Rupees Ten Thousand Only) on the Petitioner for unnecessarily wasting the valuable time of this Court. The same shall be paid to the Orissa High Court Bar Association, Cuttack for purchasing of books within a period of ten days from today," concluded the court. 

To view the official order, click on the link below:

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