Mumbai: Justice KK Sonawane of the Bombay High Court, in an interesting development, strongly dissented with a senior judge presiding over the same division bench, while dealing with pleas alleging misappropriation of public funds in road repair works.
Justice KK Sonawane passed a dissenting judgement on October 3, calling it an outcome of a "lack of consultation and coordination".
He noted that the judgement rendered in the same case by Justice TV Nalawade of the Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court was made in a "very cryptic" and "obscure manner" by simply declaring that "both petitions are allowed".
While Justice Nalawade, the Senior Judge, had allowed the pleas on September 18, Justice Sonawane took an opposite view and noted,
“This is a glaring example of lack of coordination, lack of consultation, deliberation or discussion on the matter-in-issue amongst the judges of this Division Bench (TV Nalawade and KK Sonawne JJ) prior to the pronouncement of judgment into the matter pending for adjudication on merit.”
A Division Bench was hearing a plea by Prashant Bamb, a member of the State Legislature who had alleged fraud and mischief in renewal and repair works of the Kalyan-Ahmednagar-Parbhani-Nanded-Nirmal Road allotted to the contractor GG Constructions.
