Quick answer
Yes, if the government controls it deeply enough. In Pradeep Kumar Biswas v. Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (16 April 2002), a seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court held by a 5:2 majority that the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), a registered society, is "State" under Article 12. The test is whether, on the cumulative facts, the body is financially, functionally and administratively dominated by or under the control of the Government, and that control is particular to the body and pervasive. Mere regulatory control is not enough. The earlier ruling in Sabhajit Tewary v. Union of India (1975) was overruled.
The case
Pradeep Kumar Biswas v. Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Supreme Court of India, 16 April 2002. Bench: S.P. Bharucha, CJI, Syed Shah Mohammed Quadri, R.C. Lahoti, N. Santosh Hegde, Doraiswamy Raju, Ruma Pal and Arijit Pasayat, JJ. The appellants challenged the termination of their services by the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, a unit of CSIR, through a writ petition in the Calcutta High Court. The High Court dismissed their case by following Sabhajit Tewary, and on appeal the question was referred to a larger bench. Justice Ruma Pal wrote the majority judgment; Justices Lahoti and Raju dissented.
The test laid down
- The tests in Ajay Hasia v. Khalid Mujib Sehravardi (1981) are not a rigid checklist; a body does not become "State" just because it meets one of them.
- The question is whether the body is financially, functionally and administratively dominated by, or under the control of, the Government.
- The control must be particular to that body and pervasive (deep and all-round).
- Control that is merely regulatory, under a statute or otherwise, does not make a body "State".
- The legal form, such as registration as a society, does not decide the question; the real relationship with the Government does.
Majority and dissent compared
| Point | Majority (Ruma Pal, J.) | Dissent (Lahoti, J., for himself and Raju, J.) |
|---|---|---|
| Is CSIR "State" under Article 12? | Yes | No |
| Sabhajit Tewary (1975) | Overruled | Correctly decided and should stand |
| 1986 notification bringing CSIR under the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985 | Removes any remaining doubt that CSIR is "State" | Copied mechanically; not decisive |
Example
Renu works for a research society registered under the societies law. The Union Government provides almost all its funds, appoints most of its governing body, can issue binding directions and can take over its property. When Renu's service is terminated without a hearing, she can argue that the society is "State" under Article 12, because the government's control is financial, functional, administrative and pervasive. If the government only licensed and inspected the society like any other private body, that regulatory control would not be enough.
Current law note
Pradeep Kumar Biswas remains the leading test for deciding whether a body is "other authorities" under Article 12. A finding that a body is "State" lets a person enforce fundamental rights against it directly. For the earlier development of the "instrumentality of the State" idea, see Sukhdev Singh v. Bhagatram.
Exam point
Pradeep Kumar Biswas (2002): a body is "State" under Article 12 if it is financially, functionally and administratively dominated by the Government and the control is pervasive, not merely regulatory; CSIR held to be State and Sabhajit Tewary (1975) overruled.
