Page:29357 2016 1 1501 44512 Judgement 11-May-2023.pdf/69

PART J is actually run by a large body of officials who have no concern with politics.”

100. A Constitution Bench of this Court in Union of India v. Tulsiram Patel dwelt on the ubiquitous nature of the civil service and observed:

“34. The concept of civil service is not new or of recent origin. Governments — whether monarchial, dictatorial or republican — have to function; and for carrying on the administration and the varied functions of the government age number of persons are required and have always been required, whether they are constituted in the form of a civil service or not.”

101. In the Indian Constitution, an entire Part, Part XIV, is dedicated to ‘services’, indicating the great significance which the members of the Constituent Assembly reposed in the civil service officers. During the Constituent Assembly Debates, the civil services were referred to as the “soul of administration” and it was said that the “importance of the civil services cannot be gainsaid.” Part XIV deals with “Services under the Union and the States”. Chapter I comprising of Articles 308 to 313 deals with services, and Chapter II comprising of Articles 315 to 323 deals with Public Service Commissions for the Union and the States. The effectiveness of the elaborate provisions of Part XIV is to a large extent dependent upon the relationship between the ministers and civil service officers.

(b) Accountability of civil servants in a Westminster parliamentary democracy

102. In a democracy, accountability lies with the people who are the ultimate sovereign. The parliamentary form of government adopted in India essentially