1. Petitioner No.2 is an officer and Constituted Attorney of petitioner No.1. The reference in this judgment to the petitioner will be to petitioner No.1. Respondent Nos.2 and 3 are the Directorate of Industries and Joint Director of Industries.

2. The petitioner seeks a writ of certiorari to quash a report dated 5th January, 2011, prepared by an expert committee and an order dated 4th March, 2011, passed by respondent No.3, cancelling a registration certificate issued in its favour. The petitioner has also sought a writ of mandamus restraining the respondents from acting in furtherance of the said report and order.

3. Respondent No.1 Government of Maharashtra, with a view to encourage setting up IT units and infrastructure in the State from time to time announced the Maharashtra IT/ITES Policy. We are concerned in this writ petition with the Policy for the year 2009.

4. (A) Clause 3 of the Policy for the year 2009 enumerated the initiatives enabling creation of long term assets through an expanding talented pool, extensive IT infrastructure and a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. The benefits which are enumerated in clause 3.1 included infrastructural and physical benefits such as additional FSI, the supply of power at industrial rates, exemption from stamp duty, reduced tax rates in certain cases, exemption from octroi / entry tax or other cess or tax levied in lieu thereof and the levy of property tax on IT-ITES units at par with residential rates. Relaxations were also granted under various enactments. (B) Clause 5, of the Police, insofar as it is relevant, reads as under :- 5. DEFINITIONS 5.1 In the context of this Policy, the Information Technology industry consists of IT Software, IT hardware, and IT Enabled services as defined below: ...... (c) IT enabled Services: IT enabled Services are defined as web enabled marketed services, and include Data Conversion, data mining, digitization, data entry, data processing, data warehousing Digitization of spoken material Information Services Packaged software support services. (C) The procedure for registration of IT units in Maharashtra was also prescribed. Clause 2.3 thereof provided as under :-

2.) What is the procedure for applying for LOI/Permanent Registration?......... 3. For IT Services (and ITES) units: At least 75% of the total annual turnover in value terms comprises of IT Services as indicated in Annexure `B'. The relevant part of Annexure-B reads as under:- Annexure B The list of activities registrable as IT services and IT enabled services.

1.......

2. Data Processing

3. .......

6. E-mail, data fax and internet fax services......... The list is illustrative and not exhaustive.

5. (A) The petitioner, accordingly, submitted its application for registration as an IT enabled Service/unit. Against item 7 of the form which pertained to Nature and details of services/software: the petitioner specified Telecom services. The form also lists the equipment in respect of the telecom services. The required affidavit in support of the application was filed in which the petitioner, inter-alia, stated that the annual turnover of the IT enabled Service shall always exceed 75% of the total annual turnover of the unit. At the relevant time, the petitioner forwarded certificates of its Chartered Accountant to establish the same. (B) The Government of Maharashtra, Office of the Regional Joint Directorate of Industries issued a certificate dated 18th March, 2009 by which the petitioner was registered as an IT enabled Service unit for telecom services. The certificate was valid for three years i.e. upto 18th March, 2012.

6. Two years later, by a letter dated 6th January, 2011, respondent No.2 Directorate of Industries requested the petitioner to submit the following information :- 1) Total turnover of M/s. Reliance Communications Ltd., for year 2008-2009. 2) Out of total turnover of M/s. Reliance Communications Ltd., turnover in Internet Service Providing (Communicat