Absence of plausible explanation or cogent reasons for delay warrants dismissal of writ appeal.

The appellant, Rahul Kumar Devdas, filed a writ petition (WPS No. 6756/2021) which was dismissed by a learned Single Judge on September 8, 2025

The appeal was filed with a delay of 112 days

The appellant filed an application (I.A. No. 01/2026) seeking condonation of this delay. During the hearing, the court queried the appellant regarding the reasons for the inordinate delay

The State respondents opposed the application, contending that the appeal was barred by delay and laches and lacked any cogent explanation for the lapse

Whether the delay of 112 days in filing the writ appeal can be condoned in the absence of a plausible explanation or cogent reasons

Union of India v. Tarsem Singh (2008) 8 SCC 652, which establishes that belated claims are normally rejected unless they involve a "continuing wrong" that does not affect the settled rights of third parties

C. Jacob v. Director of Geology and Mining (2008) 10 SCC 115, which holds that stale or limitation-barred claims can be rejected on those grounds alone without examining the merits, and that subsequent representations or court-directed considerations do not revive a dead claim

The Court observed that the appellant failed to offer any "plausible explanation" or "cogent reason" for the 112-day delay when specifically queried

In applying the Tarsem Singh and C. Jacob precedents, the Court noted that the doctrine of laches and limitation must be strictly applied where a claim has become stale, particularly in service matters where third-party rights (like seniority or promotion) might be affected

The Court reasoned that since the grounds raised in the condonation application (I.A. No. 01/2026) were not supported by sufficient or convincing reasoning, there was no "good ground" to exercise judicial discretion to condone the delay

Consequently, the High Court rejected I.A. No. 01/2026 (application for condonation of delay) and dismissed the writ appeal as being barred by limitation