High Courts Should Not Entertain Writ Petitions When Tribunal Remedy Is Available: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that High Courts should ordinarily refrain from exercising jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution when an effective statutory remedy before a tribunal is available.

A bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi dismissed appeals related to the recruitment of 15,000 primary school teachers in Karnataka, directing the petitioners to first approach the Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal (KSAT).

The Court clarified that High Courts may intervene only in exceptional situations, such as violations of fundamental rights, breaches of natural justice, lack of jurisdiction, or challenges to the vires of a statute.