often becomes necessary to enquire whether the said authority or body is required to act judicially or quasi.judicially in deciding questions entrusted to it by the statute. It sometimes also becomes necessary to consider whether such an authority or body is a tribunal or not. [t is well-known that even administrative bodies or authorities which are authorised to deal with matters within their jurisdiction in an administrative manner, are required to reach their decisions fairly and objectively; but in reaching thelr decisions, they would be justified in taking into account considerations of policy. Even so, administrative bodies may, in acting fairly and objectively, follow che principles of natural justice; but that does not make the administrative bodies tribunals and does not impose on them an obligation to follow the principles of natural justice. On the other hand, authorities or bodies which are given jurisdiction by statutory provisions to deal with tbe rights of citizens, may be required by the relevant statute to act judicially in dealing with matters entrusted to them. An obligation to act judicially may, in some cases, be inferred from the scheme of the relevant statute and its material provisions. In such, a case, it is easy to hold that the authority or body must act in accordance with the principles of natural justice before exercising its jurisdiction and its powers; but it ls not necessary that the obligation to follow the principles of natural justice must be expressly imposed on such an authority or body. If it appears that the authority or body has been given power to determine questions affecting the rights of citizens, the very nature of the power would inevitably impose the limitation that the power should be exercised in conformity with the principles of natural justice. Whether or not such an authority or body is a tribunal, would depend upon the nature of the power conferred on the authority or body, the nature of the rights of citizens, the decision of which falls within the jurisdiction of the said authority or body, and other relevant circumstances. This question has been considered by this Court on several occasions. In the Associated Cement Companies Ltd., Bhupendra Cement Works, Surajpur v. P. N. Sharma and another('), both aspects of this matter have been elaborately examined, arid it has been held, adopting the vieW expre.>s~d by the House of Lords-in Ridge v. Baldwin and others(') that the extent of the area where the principles of natural justice have to be followed and judicial approach has to be adopted, must depend primarily on the nature of the jurisdiction and the power conferred on any authority or body by statutory provisions to deal with the questions affecting the rights of citizens. In other words, in that decision this Court has held that the test prescribed by Lord Reid in his judgment in the case of Ridge(') affords· valuable assistance in dealing with the vexed question with which we are concerned in the present appeal.
