ANAND SHYAM AGARWAL vs STATE BANK OF INDIA

Judgment text excerpt

Digitally signed by MULEY SHUBHAM MULEY PRAVINRAO SHUBHAM Date: PRAVINRAO 2025.09.30 19:21:51 3-WP-62-2024.DOCX +0530 Shubham IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 62 OF 2024 Anand Shyam Agarwal & Ors. ...Petitioners Vs. State Bank of India & Anr. ...Respondents ______________________________________________________ Adv. Shadab Jan a/w Sujit Lahoti, Tejasvi Kudtarkar i/by Sujit Lahoti & Associates for the Petitioner. Adv. Rathina Marvarman for the Respondent No.1. Adv. Prasad Shenoy a/w Aditi Phatak, Parichehr Zaiwalla, Vijay Salokhe, Ankit Upadhyay and Ishita Desai i/by BLACK Co. for Respondent No.2. ______________________________________________________ CORAM : M.S. Sonak & Advait M. Sethna, JJ. DATED : 26 September 2025 P.C.:- 1. Heard learned counsel for the parties. 2. Rule. Rule is made returnable immediately at the request and with the consent of the learned counsel for the parties. 3. The Petitioners challenge orders dated 22 October 2020 made by the willful defaulters’ identification committee and 12 January 2021 made by the review committee in the context of the Petitioners being declared as willful defaulters in terms of the master circular dated 1 July 2015. Page 1 of 3 3-WP-62-2024.DOCX 4. The Petitioners have also challenged the constitutional validity of the master circular dated 1 July 2015. 5. In this Petition, we are not required to examine the constitutional validity of the master circular because we are satisfied that the impugned orders must be set aside for breach of natural justice. It is well settled that if a matter can be disposed of without examining the issues of constitutional validity, then that is the course which is to be preferred. 6. The record shows that the impugned orders dat