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2014 Supreme(AP) 962
HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH
NOOTY RAMAMOHANA RAO, J.
V. Srinivasa Murthy - Appellant
Versus
The State of Telangana, Rep by its Principal Secretary, Excise Department, Secretariat & Others -Respondent
Writ Petition No. 26356 of 2014
Decided on : 15-09-2014
Advocate Appeared
For the Petitioner:Venkata Raghu Mannepalli, Advocate.
For the Respondents: R1, R3, R4, GP for Prohibition & Excise (TG), R2, GP for General Administration (TG)
Headnote:
Andhra Pradesh Excise Act, 1968 - section 72 read with sections 17, 28 and 29 - Rules, 2012 - Revenue Department - Seeks a writ of mandamus for declaring orders - Arbitrary unreasonable and volatile of principles of natural justice and consequently to set-aside same - Petitioner was granted a license for retail sale of Indian Made Foreign Liquor and Foreign Liquor which is known as A-4 Shop License duration of license period is one year commencing from challenges orders of respondent-State through their consider it appropriate to extract in contents of said orders - In exercise of the powers conferred - Governor of hereby makes following amendment to Andhra Pradesh Excise published in Gazette in Rules Supplement – Government after careful examination of policy proposals submitted by Commissioner of Prohibition & Excise and suggestions received from various stakeholders formulate the Excise Policy in relation to retail liquor shops for Excise – Held, Decision is announced before hand fair procedures and practices would fall in place in giving effect to a policy decision - Further uniform application can be achieved in that process – Therefore in principle cannot concede to any of contentions canvassed by petitioner in this writ petition that first respondent-State lacks competence to formulate or announce its excise policy for year - Various contentions canvassed in pleadings set up in this writ petition which were also very vehemently pressed for consideration at Bar are totally unconnected to two impugned orders - Pleadings relate to some Holographic Label Project while impugned orders have not talked of same - Therefore at a loss to comprehend what connection pleadings set up and urged at Bar have to validity of orders challenged in this writ petition - There was a great intellectual disconnect between them and hence refrain from expressing any opinion on tenability or otherwise of pleas - Petition dismissed
The petitioner seeks a writ of mandamus for declaring the orders issued by the first respondent-State of Telangana through their G.O.Ms.No.01 and G.O.Ms.No.02 Revenue (Excise-II) Department dated 14.06.2014, as illegal, arbitrary, unreasonable and violative of principles of natural justice and consequently to set-aside the same.
The petitioner was granted a license for retail sale of Indian Made Foreign Liquor and Foreign Liquor, which is known as A-4 Shop License. The duration of the license period is one year commencing from 01.07.2014 to end on 30.06.2015. Now, he challenges the orders of the first respondent-State through their G.O.Ms.No.01 and G.O.Ms.No.02 Revenue (Excise-II) Department dated 14.06.2014. Hence, I, consider it appropriate to extract in-toto the contents of the said orders herein below.
“GOVERNMENT OF TELANGANA ABSTRACT RULES – The Andhra Pradesh Excise (Grant of license of selling by shop and conditions of license) Rules, 2012 – Amendment – Orders – Issued.
REVENUE (EXCISE-II) DEPARTMENT
G.O.Ms.No.01. Dated 14.06.2014 Read:
G.O.Ms.No.391, Revenue (Ex.II) Dept., dated 18.06.2012
ORDER:
The following notification will be published in an Extra-ordinary Issue of the Telangana State Gazette, dated the 14th June 2014.
NOTIFICATION
In exercise of the powers conferred by section 72 read with sections 17, 28 and 29 of the Andhra Pradesh Excise Act, 1968 (Andhra Pradesh Act 17 of 1968) the Governor of Telangana hereby makes the following amendment to the Andhra Pradesh Excise (Grant of licence of selling by shop and conditions of licence) Rules, 2012 issued in G.O.Ms.No.391, Revenue(Ex.II) Department, dated the 18th June, 2012 and published in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette in Rules Supplement to Part II, Extraordinary No.1, dated the 18th June, 2012.
AMENDMENT
In the said rules, for rule 21, the following shall be substituted, namely, “21. A license granted under these Rules for the period from 1st July of an year to 30th June of the succeeding year or part thereof shall not be considered for renewal for the subsequent year”.
(BY ORDER AND IN THE NAME OF THE GOVERNOR OF TELANGANA)
B.R.MEENA PRINCIPAL SECRETARY TO GOVRNMENT (FAC)
GOVERNMENT OF TELANGANA ABSTRACT
Prohibition & Excise – Excise Policy 2014-15 (i.e., from 01.07.2014 to 30.06.2015 for disposal of retail liquor outlets – Orders – Issued.
REVENUE (EXCISE-II) DEPARTMENT G.O.Ms. No. 2 Dated 14.6.2014
Read the following:
1) From CPE Cr.No.3600/2010/CPE/G2, dated 28.5.2014
2) From CPE Cr.No.01/AddlCPE-Peshi/2014, dated 6.6.2014.
3) G.O.Ms.No.01, Rev (Ex-II) Dept., dated 14.6.2014.
ORDER:
The following notification will be published in an Extra-ordinary issue of the Telangana Gazette dated 14th June 2014.
PROHIBITION & EXCISE POLICY FOR 2014-15 FOR DISPOSAL OF RETAIL LIQUOR OUTLETS
The Government, after careful examination of the policy proposals submitted by the Commissioner of Prohibition & Excise and suggestions received from various stakeholders hereby formulate the Excise Policy in relation to retail liquor shops for the Excise Year 2014-15.
1. The privilege of selling liquor through retail shops shall be granted by collecting fixed licence fee based on population, as per 2011 Census, of the places (Corporation/Municipality/Town/Village) for the year 2014-15.
2. The Commissioner of Prohibition & Excise is permitted to relocate the undisposed A4 shops from any locality / area as he thinks fit, but he shall not relocate the A4 shop from higher licence fee slab to lower licence fee slab.
3. The method of selection for grant of shop licences shall be by draw of lots.
4. T h e period of licence shall be one year i.e., from 01.07.2014 to 30.06.2015. There will be however no right of subsequent renewal beyond 2014-15.
5. The number of retail shops shall be retained at the present level (2216).
6. The Telangana State Beverages Corporation Limited outlets established under rule 18(1) of Andhra Pradesh Excise (Grant of licence of selling by shop and cond
