Supreme Court: No Fire NOC Needed for Educational Institutions in Buildings Under 15 m Height

New Delhi, Sept. 21, 2025 - The Supreme Court of India, while recently quashing a criminal cheating case, reaffirmed an important point of law: educational institutions operating from buildings under 15 metres in height are not required to obtain a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Fire Department.

A two-judge bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Joymalya Bagchi delivered the September 10, 2025, judgement, setting aside criminal proceedings against JVRR Education Society and its representative, Jupally Lakshmikantha Reddy. The proceedings stemmed from an FIR lodged on 15 July 2018 and a subsequent chargesheet under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code, which accused Reddy of using a forged No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the fire department to secure recognition for the college.

However, the apex court observed that the National Building Code of India, 2016, exempts educational institutions located in buildings under 15 metres in height from obtaining a fire NOC. The college at the centre of the case stood at 14.20 metres high. Therefore, a fire NOC could not have been a precondition for recognition or renewal, meaning no dishonest inducement could be shown. The bench also noted that the alleged forged document was never recovered and the chargesheet contained no material linking the appellant to its manufacture—an essential element for forgery under Sections 464 and 465 IPC.

Relying on established precedent that requires proof of dishonest inducement to sustain cheating charges, the Supreme Court set aside the Andhra Pradesh High Court’s 2024 decision refusing to quash the case and annulled the criminal proceedings under Section 420 of the IPC.

The order restores relief to the appellant and the institution and underscores that, where the law does not require a fire NOC, its absence cannot found criminal liability.

Source: SCC Online