Operation of business without the required certificates is in violation of the law, and the authority's actions in enforcing the legal provisions are justified.

JUDGMENT

Amrita Sinha, J. - The petitioner is carrying on business of selling sweets under the name and style of "M/s. Sweet Corner" at premises being holding no. 1 ward no. 18, Chandernagore Municipal Corporation, P.O. and P.S. - Chandernagore, District - Hooghly. The petitioner claims to be a lawful tenant of the said premises.

2. The Commissioner of the Chandernagore Municipal Corporation issued a notice on 28th August, 2020 directing the petitioner to show cause as to why his trade and calling shall not be shut down with immediate effect and/or appropriate action shall not be initiated under Section 385 of the West Bengal Municipal Corporation Act, 2006, as amended. The charge against the petitioner was that he was engaged in trade at the aforesaid holding for the last three years without obtaining a valid trade enlistment certificate.

3. The petitioner submitted his show cause on 14th September, 2020. A hearing was conducted by the Chandernagore Municipal Corporation on 15th October, 2020 and an order has been passed by the Commissioner. The said order is impugned herein.

4. In the order dated 15th October, 2020 it has been mentioned that the petitioner was running the business unlawfully without having proper and valid certificate of trade enlistment under Section 141 of the West Bengal Municipal Corporation Act, 2006, as amended. The said business was being run from a building, construction of which has not yet completed and completion certificate was not issued in respect of the said building.

5. The Commissioner directed the petitioner to shut down the trade/business in the nomenclature and style of "Sweet Corner" in the premises of holding no. 1, ward no. 18 within seven days after service of the copy of the aforesaid order, failing which appropriate action would be taken.

6. The petitioner is aggrieved by the same.

7. The petitioner claims to have visited the office of the respondent authorities for obtaining the certificate for enlistment, but the application for issuance of the certificate of enlistment was allegedly not accepted on the ground of non-payment of property tax. The petitioner expressed his willingness to pay the apportioned property tax in respect of the portion occupied by him in the said premises.

8. As the application for enlistment was not accepted by the respondent authorities the petitioner forwarded the application for obtaining the certificate of enlistment through registered post on 18th November, 2020.

9. The petitioner has prayed for issuance of a writ of mandamus to recall, rescind, cancel and/or quash the impugned order dated 15th October, 2020 and a further order restraining the respondent authorities from taking coercive action on the basis of the aforesaid impugned order.

10. The primary contention of the petitioner is that the respondent authorities have illegally and arbitrarily not issued the certificate of enlistment in his favour relying upon extraneous consideration. It has been submitted that non-assessment of the property tax of the premises in question should not be a ground for non-granting the certificate of enlistment to carry on business in the said premises. It has further been submitted that the Corporation is taking discriminatory stand in respect of the traders carrying on business in the said premises. According to the petitioner the Corporation has issued certificate of enlistment in respect of other traders in the said premises but intentionally and deliberately did not issue the certificate of enlistment in his favour.

11. The petitioner relies upon the decision delivered by an Hon'ble Division Bench of this Court in the matter of Asian Leather Ltd. & Anr. -vs- Kolkata Municipal Corporation & Ors., (2007) 3 CalHN 476 on the issue that the Corporation has no power to do anything unless those powers are conferred on it by the statute which creates it.

12. The petitioner also relies upon the judgment delivered by this Court in Harvinder Singh -vs- Kolkata Municipal Co