Judgment

KOSHAL, J.:- By this judgment we shall dispose of Civil Appeals Nos. 2595 and 2596 of 1969 in each one of which the Director, Enforcement Directorate, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Government of India (hereinafter referred to as the Director) challenges an order of the Mysore High Court dated the 4th of June, 1969, allowing two petitions preferred by the respondents for the issuance of writs under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

2. The facts giving rise to the two appeals may be briefly stated. The Government of India promulgated an Export Promotion Scheme under which exporters of textile goods and handicrafts were issued licences for import of raw materials on the basis of their export performance. The scheme envisaged the issuance of import licences solely on the basis of the declared value of the exported goods. Since exporters were able to earn a handsome profit (ranging in some cases between 200 and 300 per cent of the face value) by sale of such import licences, the Scheme brought into existence a mushroom growth of textile exporters and parties acting benami on behalf of established exporters. Most of the exporters had abroad their own branches