The Supreme Court has ruled that a court cannot direct the authorities to act against the law as such directions will lead to the destruction of rule of law in the country.

A bench comprising Justices B Sudarshan Reddy and Surinder Singh Nijjar while allowing an appeal of the West Bengal government noted, 'neither the government can act contrary to the rules nor the court can direct the government to act contrary to rules.

No mandamus lies for issuing direction to a government to refrain from enforcing a provision of law. No court can issue mandamus directing the authorities to act in contravention of the rules as it would amount to compelling the authorities to violate the law. Such directions may result in destruction of rule of law.'

Justice Reddy writing the 19-page judgement for the bench yesterday also cautioned the courts against interfering in the matter of equation of posts and salaries. He said the courts should avoid giving a declaration granting a particular scale of pay and compel the government to implement it as this task is best left to an expert body since it is a complex matter which is for the executive to discharge.

The apex court strongly disapproved the tendency among the judges of the tribunal to delegate their powers to the executive and said the tribunal must decide the matter filed before them on merits and the administrative tribunal by their order cannot create and constitute any quasi-judicial authorities and entrust matters for their decision which otherwise are not within their jurisdiction.

In the present case, the tribunal had directed the chief engineer Public Works (roads) department, government of West Bengal to decide the application containing dispute of pay scale between senior laboratory assistant and the research assistant as the lab assistant demanded the pay scale at par with the research assistants.