Harihar Prasad v. State of Bihar
Rule established
The principle of contemporanea expositio (interpretation by usage or practice contemporaneous with the enactment) is a valid aid to statutory interpretation.
Facts
- Dispute over mining lease renewal under Bihar mining regulations
- Administrative authorities had consistently followed a particular interpretation for decades
- Petitioner challenged that interpretation
Issue
- Whether long-standing administrative practice can be used as an aid to interpret ambiguous statutory provisions.
Held
- Contemporanea expositio is a legitimate external aid
- Where administrative practice is long, uniform, and consistent, it carries persuasive weight
- Particularly relevant when private rights have crystallised based on that practice
- Appeal dismissed
Ratio Decidendi
A contemporaneous and consistent interpretation placed on a statute by the executive, acquiesced in by the legislature for a long period, is entitled to great weight as an aid to construction of ambiguous provisions.
How to use it in an exam
- Authority for contemporanea expositio as external aid
- Useful for IoS Part B on external aids
- Key line: "In Harihar Prasad v. State of Bihar (1972), the Supreme Court held that long-standing administrative practice is a valid aid to statutory interpretation under the principle of contemporanea expositio."
Source
Source: AIR 1972 SC 1555
This is an educational summary, not the judgment itself. Cite the reported version in professional or academic work.