KSLU Solved Question Papers
Administrative Law
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 5
2022 Apr (100 marks) Examination
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Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 5 Administrative Law 2022 Apr (100 marks) Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
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Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2022 Apr (100 marks) examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2022 Apr (100 marks) examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 100 · 13 questions answered
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1What is administrative law ? Explain the objectives and sources of administrative law.[16]
Answer
For full marks, cover: what administrative law is (a working definition and its subject matter); its objectives, each illustrated by a decision: legality (Ganpati Singhji), fair procedure (Swadeshi Cotton Mills), non-arbitrariness (E.P. Royappa), protection of rights (Himat Lal), redress and compensation (Nilabati Behera), accountability and openness (the Lokpal and RTI laws), and an effective administration (Asif Hameed); its sources, each with an example: the Constitution, statutes, delegated legislation (Sukhdev Singh), administrative directions (Sant Ram Sharma, G.J. Fernandez), judicial decisions, the English common law, and committee reports; the order in which the sources prevail; a conclusion.
What administrative law is
Administrative law is the branch of public law that governs the administration. It deals with the organisation and powers of administrative authorities and the procedure they must follow. It also covers the controls over them, and the remedies of persons harmed by what they do. Its subject matter is everything the executive does apart from pure policy: making rules, deciding disputes, granting licences, acquiring property, running services and exercising discretion.
Objectives
1. Keeping power within law. The first aim is that every administrative act must be authorised by law and stay within it. Ganpati Singhji v. State of Ajmer, AIR 1955 SC 188. Rules made under a power to regulate "conservancy and sanitation at fairs" set up a permit system controlled by the District Magistrate. The Supreme Court held them ultra vires, and the Magistrate's refusal of a permit fell with them.
2. Securing fair procedure. Decisions affecting people must be made fairly, by an unbiased authority after hearing them. Swadeshi Cotton Mills v. Union of India, AIR 1981 SC 818. The Government took over a company's management without a prior hearing. By majority the Supreme Court held that a pre-decisional hearing was impliedly required, though the statute was silent.
3. Preventing arbitrariness. E.P. Royappa v. State of Tamil Nadu, AIR 1974 SC 555. The acting Chief Secretary challenged his transfer as arbitrary. The challenge failed on the facts, but Bhagwati J said that "equality is antithetic to arbitrariness". Arbitrary administrative action is unconstitutional under Article 14.
4. Protecting rights. Administrative power must respect fundamental rights. Himat Lal K. Shah v. Commissioner of Police, Ahmedabad, AIR 1973 SC 87, struck down a rule giving the police unguided power to refuse permission for public meetings. The rule interfered with the freedom of assembly without any standard.
5. Providing redress. A person wronged by the administration must have a remedy. Without a remedy, the other objectives would be promises only. The remedy may be a writ quashing the action, a suit for damages, an appeal, or compensation in public law. Nilabati Behera v. State of Orissa, AIR 1993 SC 1960. A young man died in police custody, and the Supreme Court awarded compensation to his mother under Article 32. It held this to be a public law remedy based on strict liability, to which sovereign immunity is no defence.
6. Accountability and openness. Administrative law makes officials answerable through ombudsmen, vigilance bodies and the right to information. The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act 2013, the Central Vigilance Commission Act 2003 and the Right to Information Act 2005 serve this objective. Section 63 of the Lokpal Act requires every State to set up a Lokayukta. Section 2(h) of the RTI Act extends the duty of disclosure to bodies owned, controlled or substantially financed by the Government. Openness of this kind prevents abuse before it happens, which courts can only correct afterwards.
7. An effective administration. Administrative law is not only a check. It must also let the administration govern. Asif Hameed v. State of Jammu and Kashmir, AIR 1989 SC 1899, held that courts cannot direct the executive on policy, and must exercise self-restraint. The aim is a balance between power and control.
Sources
1. The Constitution. It is the highest source. Article 12 defines the State, and Articles 14, 19 and 21 limit administrative action. Articles 32 and 226 provide the writs, and Articles 299 and 300 govern contracts and suits. Articles 311 and 323A deal with civil servants and tribunals.
2. Statutes. Acts of Parliament and the State legislatures create authorities and give them powers. Examples are the Administrative Tribunals Act 1985, the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1952, the Right to Information Act 2005 and the Karnataka Lokayukta Act 1984.
3. Delegated legislation. Rules, regulations and bye-laws made under statutes are an increasingly large source. Sukhdev Singh v. Bhagatram Sardar Singh Raghuvanshi, AIR 1975 SC 1331, held that regulations framed by statutory corporations such as the ONGC and the LIC have the force of law. Employees removed in breach of them could obtain a declaration.
4. Administrative directions. Circulars, codes and instructions guide officials. Their legal force is limited. Sant Ram Sharma v. State of Rajasthan, AIR 1967 SC 1910, held that the Government cannot amend statutory rules by instructions. But where rules are silent, it may fill the gaps by instructions consistent with them. G.J. Fernandez v. State of Mysore, AIR 1967 SC 1753, held that the Mysore Public Works Department Code consisted of "mere administrative instructions". A tenderer could not get orders quashed merely for its breach.
5. Judicial decisions. In India the most important source is case law. The courts developed the principles of natural justice and the grounds of review of discretion. They also built the doctrine of promissory estoppel and the test of "State" under Article 12. Decisions of the Supreme Court bind all courts under Article 141.
6. The English common law. Indian courts drew heavily on English administrative law. The prerogative writs, Ridge v. Baldwin [1964] AC 40 on the duty to hear, and the Wednesbury principles of reasonableness were adopted and adapted.
7. Reports of committees and commissions. Though not law, they shape it. In England, the Committee on Ministers' Powers (1932) and the Franks Committee (1957) shaped the law on delegated legislation and tribunals. In India, the Administrative Reforms Commission influenced the law on the ombudsman.
8. International instruments. Courts increasingly read administrative law in the light of international human rights standards. In Chairman, Railway Board v. Chandrima Das, AIR 2000 SC 988, a Bangladeshi woman was gang-raped by persons including railway employees at Howrah station. She was a foreign national. Relying partly on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Supreme Court held that she could still claim compensation in public law. Such instruments are not law by themselves, but they guide the interpretation of fundamental rights.
How the objectives and sources fit together
The objectives explain why the sources developed as they did. Because the Constitution aims to prevent arbitrariness and protect rights, the courts read Articles 14 and 21 widely. Because the administration needs flexibility, statutes leave details to delegated legislation and directions. And because a citizen needs redress, the courts filled gaps in the statutes with judge-made doctrines such as natural justice and public law compensation.
Which source prevails
The sources form a hierarchy. The Constitution prevails over everything. A statute prevails over delegated legislation made under it. Delegated legislation prevails over administrative directions, which can only supplement it (Sant Ram Sharma). Judicial decisions interpret all of these, and the Supreme Court's decisions bind under Article 141.
| Source | Example | Force |
|---|---|---|
| Constitution | Articles 14, 21, 32, 226, 299, 311 | Supreme |
| Statutes | Administrative Tribunals Act 1985; RTI Act 2005 | Subject to the Constitution |
| Source | Example | Force |
|---|---|---|
| Delegated legislation | Regulations of statutory corporations (Sukhdev Singh) | Subject to the parent Act |
| Administrative directions | P.W.D. Code (G.J. Fernandez) | Fill gaps only (Sant Ram Sharma) |
| Judicial decisions | Natural justice, review of discretion | Binding under Article 141 |
| Committee reports | Franks Committee | Persuasive only |
Conclusion. Administrative law governs the powers, procedure, control and liability of the administration. Its objectives are to keep power within law, secure fair procedure, prevent arbitrariness, protect rights, provide redress and ensure accountability, while still allowing effective government. Ganpati Singhji, Swadeshi Cotton Mills, Royappa, Himat Lal, Nilabati Behera and Asif Hameed illustrate these aims. Its sources are the Constitution, statutes, delegated legislation, administrative directions, judicial decisions, the English common law and committee reports. In India, judicial decisions are its richest source.
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