The Collector's power under Section 142(1) of the Maharashtra Prohibition Act is broad, allowing closure of multiple places selling intoxicants for public peace.

JUDGMENT :

Gauri Godse, J.

1. In view of the opinion expressed by the Division Bench of this Court vide order dated 12th April 2024 ("the reference order"), passed in the aforesaid petitions, we are called upon to answer the question formulated for determination by a larger bench. The question for determination is regarding the interpretation of Section 142 (1) of the Maharashtra Prohibition Act, 1949 ('said Act'). The question referred for our determination reads thus:-

"Whether the power of the Collector, under Section 142(1) of the Maharashtra Prohibition Act, 1949, to close any place where any intoxicant or hemp is sold, would be confined to only one place, i.e. one shop or it would include the power to pass an order of closure of all places where intoxicant or hemp is sold in the entire district or parts of the district?"

FACTS IN BRIEF:

2. In all three petitions, separate orders passed by the District Collector to exercise the powers conferred under sub-section (1) of Section 142 of the said Act are under challenge. Learned Collector has suspended the FL-I, FL-II and FL-III, etc. licenses for one day, i.e. on 14th April 2024, on the occasion of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti. The said orders passed on 8th April 2024 are challenged by the license holders in the aforesaid petitions. In all three orders, the learned Collector has opined that to avoid any untoward incident on 14th April 2024, during the celebration of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti and to maintain law and order situation, the learned Collector found it fit to exercise power under Section 142 of the said Act to close the shops of the license holders on the day of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioners in support of the petitioners' contentions to challenge the learned Collector's order relied upon the decision of the Division Bench of this Court in the case of Parbhani Jilla Daru Vikreta Sanghatana, Parbhani vs. The State of Maharashtra and Ors 2018(1) Mh.L.J 343 and the decision of the Division Bench of this Court in the case of Nitin s/o Nagoraoji Mohod & anr. vs. the State of Maharashtra & Ors., Writ Petition No. 2928 of 2019 dated 12th April 2019 and the decision of a Single Judge of this Court in Maharashtra Wine Merchants Association Vs. State of Maharashtra and Others 2007(3) Bom. CR 343. Learned counsel for the petitioners mainly relied upon paragraph 7 of the judgment in the case of Parbhani Jilla Daru Vikreta Sanghatna ("the judgment under reference"). By referring to the petitioners' contentions, the Division Bench, while making the reference order, has opined in paragraphs 9 and 11 as under:

9. Having heard learned Counsel for the parties, and having perused the provisions of Section 142 of the Act, prima facie we respectfully find ourselves not in agreement with the interpretation as placed on Section 142 by the Division Bench in Parbhani Jilla Daru Vikreta Sanghatana, Parbhani (supra), when, in paragraph 7 of the said judgment, the Division Bench has restricted the application of Section 142 only to a particular place or for that matter one shop or one licence. We are of the opinion that sub-section (1) and sub-section (2) of Section 142 are mutually exclusive. The powers and circumstances as contemplated under sub-section (2) stand independent of sub-section (1). Sub-section (1) appears to be an independent power conferred on the Collector to be exercised in the interest of public peace. In our opinion, such power also appears to be a wide power and hence required to be interpreted broadly and it ought not to confine the powers of the Collector to close only one place, one shop or one licence, more particularly when the power is to be exercised by the Collector in the interest of public peace, which is a phrase indicating larger import and not limited in its application.

11. Further, we may also observe that sale of liquor is an activity permitted under a licence which has been issued to a retailer to deal in intoxica