Bombay High Court pulls up BMC chief for requisitioning court staff for election duty

Mumbai: Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner Bhushan Gagrani on Monday admitted that he made a "mistake" requisitioning court staff for poll duty after the Bombay High Court pulled him up for overstepping his jurisdiction.

A bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad asked the civic chief to "save" himself and make arrangements from other sources.

The HC, in a suo motu (on its own) action last week, stayed Gagrani's letters directing the staff of subordinate courts to report for civic polls duty, questioning his power and jurisdiction.

It had also restrained the BMC commissioner, acting as the district election officer, from issuing any letter/communication to the staff of the high court or subordinate courts requisitioning their services for election duty.

The bench on Monday questioned how the civic chief could issue such directives.

"From which provision do you (commissioner) draw powers? You cannot summon them. You don't have the powers," the bench said.

Senior counsel Ravi Kadam, appearing for Gagrani, told the court that it was a mistake on the part of the commissioner to have issued those letters.

"The letters have been withdrawn," he said.

The bench then remarked, "Save yourself" now and posted the matter for further hearing after three weeks.

"So now save yourself. You make arrangements from other sources. We will hear you after the elections," it said.

On December 22, 2025, the commissioner issued a letter to the staff of all subordinate courts in the city directing them to report for election duty.

The same day, the chief metropolitan magistrate informed the commissioner and the Mumbai city collector that the high court had taken an administrative decision regarding staff members of subordinate courts and made a request to exempt them from election duty.

A similar communication was sent by the Registrar (Inspection) informing the civic chief about the administrative order passed by the HC.

Despite this, the commissioner, on December 29, issued a letter to the chief judicial magistrate, intimating that the request for exempting the staff of the subordinate courts had been declined.

On Monday, the commissioner's counsel said that after the HC order of last week, the commissioner wrote to all officers clarifying that court staff cannot be summoned.

"However, even after that, one returning officer wrote a letter to the sheriff's office requisitioning two staff for poll duty. But that is also rectified now," Kadam told the court.

The high court, in its order of last week, noted that in September 2008, the HC's Administrative Judges' Committee had made a decision that the staff of the high court and all subordinate courts would be exempted from election duty.

Under Article 235 of the Constitution of India, the high court exercises complete control and superintendence over the subordinate courts, including the staff, and based on this, the order exempting court staff from poll duty was passed.