Withdrawal of a writ petition without permission is deemed abandonment of the cause of action, affecting the maintainability of subsequent petitions.

JUDGMENT :

Dhiraj Singh Thakur, C.J.

1. These two writ appeals have been preferred against a common judgment and order, dated 18.06.2024, passed in writ petitions bearing Nos.12071 and 17458 of 2023.

Brief facts:

With a view to understand the background in the light of which the present controversy has arisen, it is necessary to give a few material facts in brief:

2. An application came to be filed by one R. Veeraiah, which was addressed to the Hon'ble Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India, wherein he sought LPG distributorship in his favour for Guntur town on compassionate grounds. It was stated in the application that he was sixty years old and that his dwelling unit had been washed away on account of unabated floods in Guntur District and that he had also two children, who are physically handicapped and were unable to do any work and that bringing up his children had become a problem especially after his wife's demise.

The said application was directed to be considered favourably on compassionate grounds which finally fructified when a proceeding, dated 21.01.1992, was issued by the Under Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, communicating the decision to award LPG distributorship at Guntur District in favour of the said applicant. A memorandum of agreement was executed between R. Veeraiah and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (hereinafter referred to as "BPCL") on 27.05.1992. Subsequently, it appears that R. Veeraiah sought for the permission of BPCL to incorporate his daughter Rajyalakshmi as a partner in the firm, which permission was granted on 15.04.1997. The license earlier issued by the BPCL was accordingly modified.

3. It is not out of place herein to mention that R. Veeraiah had two children, who suffered from physical disabilities, namely Rayapati Srinivasa Rao and Rayapati Prasad. It is stated that R. Veeraiah passed away on 06.02.2002, whereafter R. Srinivasa Rao, the husband of the petitioner - Rayapati Sujini, made a representation, dated 15.03.2002, to the BPCL to induct him and his brother namely Rayapati Prasad as partners in the distributorship. The BPCL is stated to have issued notices to both the sons of R. Veeraiah for subjecting them to examination by a Medical Board. Only one of the sons, namely Rayapati Prasad appeared before the Medical Board but was found unfit, while the other son Rayapati Srinivasa Rao did not appear at all.

4. A writ petition bearing No.13918 of 2003 came to be filed by both the brothers i.e., Rayapati Srinivasa Rao and Rayapati Prasad as also R. Sujini, wife of Rayapati Srinivasa Rao, who is the petitioner in the two writ petitions bearing Nos. 12071 and 17458 of 2023. In Writ Petition No.13918 of 2003, the petitioners had sought for issuance of writ of mandamus with a direction to the respondents to reconstitute the distributorship with the petitioners. This petition, however, was withdrawn subsequently. The petition, which was dismissed as withdrawn, was not accompanied with any liberty to file a fresh petition.

5. It appears from the record that R. Sujini filed a representation, dated 12.03.2023, to the BPCL urging them to reconstitute the LPG distribution agency by adding her as the sole beneficiary and partner in the LPG distributorship inasmuch as according to her, the distributorship was allotted on compassionate ground for the livelihood of her husband namely R. Srinivasa Rao and also his brother Rayapati Prasad. This representation was answered by the BPCL vide their communication, dated 30.03.2023, when they informed the petitioner R. Sujini that her induction as a partner in the distributorship was possible, if a joint application was made along with the existing partners. It is in the aforementioned background, two writ petitions came to be preferred by the petitioner R. Sujini.

6. In W.P. No.12071 of 2023, the petitioner sought a mandamus for her incorporation as a sole owner of the LPG distributorship and also pr