JUDGMENT

DESAI, J. (On behalf of himself and V. R. Krishna Iyer and S. Murtaza Fazal Ali, JJ.) (Majority Judgment):— Acquisition of industrial undertakings involved in manufacturing sugar, a commodity satisfying the basic necessity, in larger public interest and the attempt of the owners of the undertakings to thwart the same, paints the familiar landscape in this group of appeals.

2. As a sequel to the serious problems created by the owners of certain sugar mills in the State of Uttar Pradesh for cane growers and labour employed in sugar mills, having an adverse impact on the general economy of the areas where these sugar mills were situated and with a view to ameliorating the situation posing a threat to the economy, the Governor of Uttar Pradesh promulgated an Ordinance on July 3, 1971, styled as U. P. Sugar Undertakings (Acquisition) Ordinance, 1971 (13 of 1971) (Ordinance for short) with a view to transferring and vesting sugar undertaking set out in the Schedule to the Ordinance in the U. P. State Sugar Corporation Ltd. (Corporation for short), Government Company within the meaning of S. 617 of the Companies Act, 1956. Subsequently, by U. P. Sugar Undertakings (Acquisition) Ac