Gauhati High Court

Mandamus issued directing payment of admitted outstanding hire charges for vehicles utilized for law and order duties.

Manju Bibi vs The State Of Assam And 6 Ors.

Gauhati High CourtJUDGMENT: May 04, 20262 MIN READSOURCE JUDGMENT
THE ORIGINAL LAWLENS SUMMARY
01

Facts

The Petitioner, owner of three commercial vehicles (Innova, Crane, and Water Tanker), provided her vehicles to the Respondent authorities for maintaining law and order in Kamrup District between 2023 and 2025

Source reference: p. 3

The Petitioner submitted bills totaling Rs. 27,66,509/- for the hiring period, which were verified by the authorities but remained unpaid despite multiple representations

Source reference: p. 3

During the proceedings, the Senior Superintendent of Police, Kamrup, submitted an instruction dated 03.02.2026, admitting that the actual outstanding amount due to the Petitioner was Rs. 28,32,209/-

Source reference: p. 4-5
02

Issues

1. Whether the Respondent authorities are liable to release the outstanding payments for hired vehicles once the liability and the amount have been officially admitted

Source reference: p. 3, 5
03

Law Applied

The court exercised its jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India regarding the enforcement of contractual liabilities in the nature of admitted debts by the State

Source reference: p. 3

The court relied on the principle of administrative accountability and the obligation of the State to clear admitted dues without unreasonable delay once verification is complete and proposals for sanction are initiated

Source reference: p. 5-6
04

Reasoning

The court noted that the Respondent authorities did not dispute the hiring of the vehicles or the services rendered. On the contrary, the instructions placed before the court by the Government Advocate (marked as Exhibit "X") explicitly admitted a higher liability (Rs. 28,32,209/-) than what was originally claimed by the Petitioner

Source reference: p. 4-5

The Respondents conceded that while a proposal for sanction had been submitted to the Assam Police Headquarters (APHQ) on 28.01.2026, the funds were yet to be released

Source reference: para. 5, p. 5

The court reasoned that since the debt is admitted and the verification process is complete, the Petitioner is entitled to the payment subject to statutory deductions

Source reference: p. 6
05

Holding

The court disposed of the writ petition by directing the Respondent authorities to pay the admitted amount of Rs. 28,32,209/- (less statutory deductions) to the Petitioner

The court ordered that this exercise must be completed within six months from the date of receipt of the judgment by the Director General of Police, Assam

Source reference: p. 6

Any payments made during the pendency of the proceedings are to be set off against the final disbursal

Source reference: p. 6
Gauhati High Court

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Manju BibivsThe State Of Assam And 6 Ors.

Gauhati High Court · May 04, 2026

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