Jharkhand government loses Supreme Court battle over prosecutor benefits

The Supreme Court of India has dismissed a petition filed by the Jharkhand government, ending a 13-year legal dispute with its own former prosecutor, Jai Prakash.

Mr. Prakash, who served as an Assistant Public Prosecutor and later as an Additional Public Prosecutor, had been tasked with the duties of an in-charge Public Prosecutor for the District and Sessions Court in Jamshedpur starting in 2008. However, the state government had issued an order denying him the salary and benefits associated with the senior post.

Following a 2013 writ petition, the High Court ruled in favor of Mr. Prakash, ordering the state to provide the corresponding salary and facilities. The Jharkhand government appealed this decision to the Supreme Court, but a bench comprising Justice A. G. Masih and Justice Sunita Agarwal dismissed the state’s appeal in October 2026.