Sunil Kum ar Goyal vs St at e of Ut t arakhand & anot her

Judgment

1. Applicat ions subm it t ed by pet it ioners renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice as Not ary under t he Not aries Act , 1952 have been rej ect ed in view of t he policy decision t aken by t he St at e Governm ent , not t o grant renewal t o persons who have pract iced as Not ary for m ore t han t en years. Thus, feeling aggrieved, pet it ioners have approached t his Court challenging t he decision t aken by St at e Governm ent .

2. Since com m on quest ions of fact and law are involved in t hese pet it ions, t herefore, t hese pet it ions are clubbed t oget her and decided by t his com m on j udgm ent . However, t he sake of brevit y and convenience, fact s of WPMS No. 7 of 2025 alone are being considered and discussed. 1

3. Pet it ioner was enrolled as an Advocat e wit h Bar Council of Ut t ar Pradesh in t he year 1983. He was appoint ed as Not ary for a period of five years in t he year 2000, and his Cert ificat e of Pract ice was renewed from t im e t o t im e, as per Rule 8B of The Not aries Rules, 1956. His Cert ificat e of Pract ice was renewed in 2020, which was valid upt o 05.01.2025; pet it ioner applied for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice t he m ont h of June, 2024; Dist rict Magist rat e, Haridwar, based on a report subm it t ed by Sub- Divisional Magist rat e, Roorkee, recom m ended pet it ioner ’s claim renewal. St at e Governm ent rej ect ed pet it ioner ’s applicat ion for renewal, vide order dat ed 05.12.2024 on t he ground t hat pet it ioner has pract iced as Not ary for m ore t han t en years, t herefore, no furt her renewal can be grant ed t o him .

4. Pet it ioner cont ends t hat t he reason assigned for rej ect ing his applicat ion is de- hors t he provisions of The Not aries Act , 1952 and t he Rules fram ed t hereunder; t here is no condit ion in t he St at ut e t hat aft er pract icing as Not ary, for t en years, prayer for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice cannot be grant ed. I t is furt her subm it t ed t hat renewal can be refused only on t he grounds enum erat ed in Sect ion 10( b) t o ( f ) of t he Act or t here is adverse report as regards charact er, int egrit y, abilit y or com pet ence of t he person who has applied for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice.

A count er affidavit has been filed by Mr. Raj esh Kuam ar, Joint Secret ary, Law- cum -Joint L.R., Law Depart m ent , Governm ent . Para 10 & 13 of t he said count er affidavit are ext ract ed below: - 2 “ 10. That t he cont ent s of paragraph no. 9 of t he said pet it ion are wrong, false and vehem ent ly denied. I n reply it is st at ed t hat aft er receiving let t er dat ed 02.07.2024 from respondent no. 2, t he answering respondent forwarded t he file t o Depart m ent al Minist er/ Hon’ble t he Chief Minist er for t he necessary appr oval. The Depart m ent al Minist er/ Hon’ble t he Chief Minist er in view of t he policy decision t aken for renewal of t he Not ary Cert ificat e, r ej ect ed t he renewal Not ary Cert ificat es of t he pet it ioner st at ing t herein t hat t he pet it ioner has been em paneled as Not ary for past m ore t han 10 years, renewal is not m andat ory and chance should be given t o new capable energet ic person. Thus, t he file was ret urned wit h t he said not ing for invit ing t he fresh panel. Therefore, in com pliance of t he aforesaid not ing, im pugned t he answering order dat ed 05.12.2024 was respondent refusing t he renewal of t he Not ary Cert ificat e of t he pet it ioner and t hereby direct ing t he respondent no. 2 t o call for new panel. I n furt her reply it is st at ed t hat Act No. 53 of 1952 does not cont ain any provision laying down m andat ory approval of t he renewal applicat ion, t herefore, t he im pugned order is in consonance wit h t he st at ut or y provisions and has been t aken as per t he policy wit h t he st at ut ory provisions and has been t aken as per t he policy decision of t he St at e. Hence, t he order is legal and valid and deserves t o be upheld. Copy of t he relevant port ion of t he not e- sheet along w it h it s t yped copy is being m arked and filed as Annexure No. A- 2 t o t his affidavit . issued by cont ent s are wrong, That t he cont ent s of paragraph no. 12 and 13 of t he 13. said pet it ion are adm it t ed in so far as t hey are m at t er of record. Rem aining false and vehem ent ly denied. Sect ion 10( f ) of Not aries Act , 1952 cat egorically provides t hat if cert ificat e of pract ice is not renewed t he nam e shall be renewed. I n t he inst ant since t he pet it ioner has already served as a Not ary for m ore t han 10 years t herefore decision has been t aken t o invit e new panel, which m eans t hat St at e has t aken t he decision t o not renew t he not ary cert ificat e of t he pet it ioner leading t o rem oval of t he nam e of t he pet it ioner from t he regist er under sect ion 10( f ) of Not aries Act , 1952.”

6. The sole j ust ificat ion offered by St at e Governm ent , for not renewing t he Cert ificat e of Pract ice of pet it ioner, is t hat he pract iced as Not ary for m ore t han t en years, t herefore, wit h a view t o give opport unit y t o fresh and energet ic persons, grant of renewal t o pet it ioner was found undesirable. I t is t hus apparent t hat request m ade by pet it ioner for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice was not considered at all in view 3 of t he decision t aken by St at e Governm ent .

7. Learned counsels for t he pet it ioners subm it t hat when t he field is covered by The Not aries Act and t he Rules fram ed t hereunder, t he policy decision t aken by St at e Governm ent cannot override St at ut ory provisions. I t furt her subm it t ed t hat St at e Governm ent cannot t ake policy decision, not t o consider t he applicat ion for renewal m erely because som eone has pract iced for t en years. I t is furt her cont ended t hat t he decision t aken by St at e Governm ent , not t o renew t he Cert ificat e of Pract ice of pet it ioners, who have pract iced as Not ary for t en years or m ore, is de- hors t he St at ut e, t hus unsust ainable.

8. The Parliam ent enact ed The Not aries Act , 1952, which cam e int o force on 14.02.1956. Sect ion 3 t hereof enables t he Cent ral Governm ent and also t he St at e Governm ent t o appoint any Legal Pract it ioners or ot her persons who possess prescribed qualificat ions, as Not ary. Sect ion 5( 1) provides t hat aft er being appoint ed as Not ary, a person will be ent it led t o have his nam e ent ered in t he Regist er m aint ained by t hat Governm ent under Sect ion 4, and also t o a cert ificat e aut horizing him t o pract ice for a period of five years. Sub- Sect ion ( 2) of Sect ion 5 provides for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice of a Not ary for a period of five years at a t im e. Sect ion 5 of The Not aries Act , 1952 is reproduced below for ready reference: - i n “ 5 . En t r y o f n a m e s i ssu e o r r e n e w a l o f ce r t i f i ca t e s o f p r a ct i ce .—( 1) Every not ary who int ends t o pract ise as such '[ m ay ] , on paym ent t o t he Governm ent appoint ing him of t he prescribed fee, if any, be ent it led— t h e Re g i st e r a n d 4 ( a) t o have his nam e ent ered in t he Regist er m aint ained by t hat Governm ent under sect ion 4; and ( b) t o a cert ificat e aut horising him t o pract ise for a period of 2[ five years] from t he dat e on which t he cert ificat e is issued t o him . t he not ary, m ay, on [ ( 2) The Governm ent appoint ing receipt of ' an applicat ion and t he prescribed fee, 'renew t he cert ificat e of pract ice of any not ary for a period of five year s at a. t im e.] ”

9. Sect ion 10 of The Not aries Act , 1952 enum erat es t he grounds on which nam e of a Not ary can be rem oved from t he Regist er m aint ained under Sect ion 4. Refusal on t he part of St at e Governm ent , t o renew t he Cert ificat e of Pract ice of t he pet it ioner, is not referable t o any of t he grounds enum erat ed in Sect ion 10 of t he Act .

10. Cent ral Governm ent has fram ed Rules exercise of power under Sect ion 15 of The Not aries Act , 1952 which are known as “ The Not aries Rules, 1956”. Rule 3 lays down t he qualificat ions for appoint m ent as Not ary. Rule 4 provides t hat applicat ion appoint m ent as Not ary m ay be m ade online in Form – I or Form I I . Rule 6, 7, 7A & 7B of t he said Rules lay t he m anner in which t he applicat ion appoint m ent as Not ary has t o be dealt wit h.

11. Rule 8( 1) deals wit h appoint m ent of a Not ary. Rule 8B of The Not aries Rules, 1956 deals wit h renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice, t herefore, would be relevant for deciding t he issue involved in t hese writ pet it ions. Rule 8B of t he Rules is ext ract ed below: - “ 8 B. Re n e w a l o f Ce r t i f i ca t e o f Pr a ct i ce - The Cert ificat e of Pract ice issued under sub- rule ( 4) of rule 8 m ay be renewed for a furt her period of five years on paym ent of prescribed fee. An applicat ion for renewal of Cert ificat e of t he Pract ice shall be subm it t ed online in Form XVI t o 5 appropriat e Governm ent before ( six m ont hs) from t he dat e of expiry of it s period of validit y. Provided t hat t he appropriat e Governm ent m ay, aft er considering t he reasons st at ed in t he applicat ion, relax t he renewal of condit ion of subm ission of applicat ion Cert ificat e of Pract ice before t he said period of six m ont hs. furt her Provided t he dat e of expiry of t hat where an applicat ion renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice is received wit hin one year aft er t he appropriat e Governm ent m ay, aft er considering t he reasons st at ed in t he applicat ion, renew t he Cert ificat e of Pract ice wit hin effect from t he dat e of expiry of it s period of validit y.” it s period of validit y,

12. From t he provisions cont ained in The Not aries Act , 1952 and t he Rules fram ed t hereunder, revealed t hat neit her any upper age lim it has been prescribed by t he St at ut e beyond which Cert ificat e of Pract ice cannot be renewed nor t here is any rest rict ion regarding t he num ber of t im es, Cert ificat e of Pract ice can be renewed. Prayer for renewal of Cert ificat e t hus can be rej ect ed, if t he applicant is guilt y of professional or ot her m isconduct or he is convict ed by any court for an offence involving m oral t urpit ude; he is an un- discharged insolvent or for som e ot her sufficient cause. There is no allegat ion against t he pet it ioner t hat he was found guilt y of professional or ot her m isconduct , which m ay render him unfit t o pract ice as a Not ary, nor does he suffer from any ot her disqualificat ion enum erat ed in Sect ion 10 of The Not aries Act , 1952. The applicat ion for renewal was m ade by pet it ioner well wit hin t im e, as per Rule 8B of The Not aries Rules, 1956 and t he Com pet ent Aut horit y recom m ended pet it ioner ’s claim for renewal t o St at e Governm ent aft er calling report from t he concerned Dist rict Level Aut horit y.

13. Careful perusal of Rule 8B would reveal t hat Cert ificat e of Pract ice, issued under Sub- Rule ( 4) of Rule 8, has t o be ordinarily renewed for a furt her 6 period of five years, subj ect t o paym ent of prescribed fee and t here lit t le discret ion left wit h t he Governm ent in t he m at t er. Alt hough Rule 8B provides t hat applicat ion for renewal has t o be subm it t ed before t he appropriat e Governm ent six m ont hs before dat e of expiry of t he period of it s validit y. However, t he said condit ion is relaxable and an applicat ion for renewal, received wit hin one year aft er t he dat e of expiry period it s validit y, can also be ent ert ained and t he Cert ificat e of Pract ice can be renewed wit h effect from t he dat e of expiry of it s period of validit y.

14. A conj oint reading of Sect ion 5( 2) of The Not aries Act , 1952 and Rule 8B of The Not aries Rules, 1956 would reveal t hat prayer for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice has t o be ordinarily grant ed and renewal can be refused only for reasons, which are referable t o t he provisions of t he St at ut e, covering t he field.

15. From t he aforesaid discussion, it is apparent t hat St at e Governm ent has t o exercise St at ut ory powers conferred under The Not aries Act , 1952 and t he Rules fram ed t hereunder. While exercising t hose St at ut ory powers, St at e Governm ent is bound by t he St at ut ory provisions and it cannot im pose som e condit ion for renewal of Cert ificat e of Pract ice, which is de- hors t he provisions of t he St at ut e.

16. From t he st and t aken by St at e Governm ent it s count er affidavit , is evident t hat St at e Governm ent did not consider t he applicat ion renewal subm it t ed by pet it ioner, even t hough it was recom m ended by t he Com pet ent Aut horit y. The only 7 reason for not considering t he applicat ion for renewal m ade by pet it ioner indicat ed in t he count er affidavit is t hat pet it ioners has pract iced for t en years or m ore as Not ary. This cannot be a valid reason for not considering t he prayer m ade by pet it ioner for renewal.

17. I n view of t he aforesaid discussion, t his Court has no hesit at ion in holding t hat t he decision t aken by St at e Governm ent , not t o consider applicat ions m ade by pet it ioners renewal of t heir Cert ificat e of Pract ice, is unsust ainable in t he eyes of law.

18. Accordingly, t he writ pet it ions are allowed. The im pugned order dat ed 05.12.2024, issued by Principal Secret ary ( Law) / Legal Rem em brancer, Governm ent of Ut t arakhand, is quashed and set aside. St at e Governm ent is direct ed t o consider t he applicat ions for renewal m ade by pet it ioners and pass appropriat e order, as per law, wit hin six weeks from t he dat e of product ion of cert ified copy of t his order. However, it is m ade clear t hat t he persons, who have been appoint ed as Not ary in t he select ion held pursuant t o t he process init iat ed by t he im pugned order, shall not be dist urbed. ________________________ M A N OJ K UM A R TI W A RI , J.

08.10.2025 Aswal NITI RAJ SINGH ASWAL DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, ou=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, 2.5.4.20=eacc6757ee7881e933ff8934f07477005aa85f9802a3 a08b08d1369512ea30f3, postalCode=263001, st=UTTARAKHAND, serialNumber=44EB54CBF00B7698CB6F10C2CE3D26F5C22D ACF4F4610C1FE58A58531726FBB0, cn=NITI RAJ SINGH ASWAL 8