WHAT DOES SLP MEAN ?
Special leave petition means that you take special permission to be heard in appeal against any High Court/tribunal verdict.
Usually any issue decided by the State High Court is considered as final, but if there exist any constitutional issue or legal issue which can only be clarified by the Supreme Court of India then, this leave is granted by the Supreme Court & this is heard as a Civil or Criminal appeal as the case may be.
Going to the Supreme Court in appeal should not be considered a matter of right by any one but it is matter of privilege which only the Supreme Court will grant to any individual if there exist an important constitutional or legal issue involved in any case that was not properly interpreted by the concerned High Court against whose judgment you approach the Highest court of the country not otherwise..
(RECENTLY BOTH KARNATAKA AND TAMIL NADU APPROACHED THE SUPREME COURT WITH THIS SLP's against the judgement of the Cauvery Regulatory Authority headed by the PM)
Special leave to appeal are filed before the Supreme Court under Article 136 of the Constitution. The Supreme Court may accept or reject the same. The consequences of rejection are of far reaching effect. The Apex Court may reject the petition seeking grant of special leave to appeal, for several reasons.
What happens if the SLP is dismissed ?
A mere dismissal of SLP does not mean that High Court decisions is approved on merits so as to be a judicial precedent. In Smt. Tej Kumari vs. CIT (2001) 247 ITR 210 Full Bench of the Patna High Court held that when a SLP is summarily rejected or dismissed under Art 136 of the Constitution such dismissal does not lay down any law. The decision of the High Court against which the SLP is dismissed in limine would not operate as resjudicata. However, when Supreme Court dismisses an SLP with reason, it might be taken as the affirmation of the High Court views on merits of the case, thus there is no reason to dilute the binding nature of precedents in such cases.
It is a settled law that
when the SLP is dismissed, whether by a speaking or non-speaking order whether in limine or on contest, second SLP would not lie. However the statement cannot be stretched and applied to hold that such an order attracts applicability of doctrine of merger and excluded jurisdiction of the court or authority passing the order to review the same.