D. P. Wadhwa, Aftab Alam and j. JJ.

1. What will be the effect of an upward revision of excise duty on the consolidated price (of which excise duty is admittedly a fraction) at which the suppliers are required to sell country liquor to the retail licencees under a four-year contract granted to them by the government. This is the common question which arises for consideration in the six writ-petitions in this batch, hence, these cases have been heard together and are being disposed of by this judgment.

2. The material facts are brief and without much controversy. A notice dated 3.6.1995 was published in the bihar Gazette (extra-ordinary) of the same date inviting tenders for the grant of exclusive privilege for the wholesale supply of country spirit in sachets/bottles for the period from July 1, 1995 to march 31, 1999. The tenderers were required to submit before the authorities of the Excise Department a project report in which, among other details, the price at which the tenderer was prepared to make the supply of country spirit to the retail licensees was also to be indicated. The quoted price was further to be reduced into its various elements, such as, sacheting/bottlin