COMPTROLLER & AUDITOR GENERAL vs KAMLESH VADILAL MEHTA

The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Gujarat High Court which found the exclusion of proprietary Chartered Accountant firms from empanelment for government audits to be discriminatory and arbitrary, violating Article 14 of the Constitution. The Court emphasized that the policy lacked a rational nexus to its objectives and directed the inclusion of the respondent's firm in the panel. The judgment reinforced the principle that arbitrary classification in public policy is unconstitutional.