Manufacturers must comply with agricultural regulation fees if they purchase agricultural produce, regardless of transformation into other products.

JUDGMENT :

Ananya Bandyopadhyay, J.

1. This instant criminal revisional application is preferred for quashing of proceedings of Complaint Case No. 29C of 2012 under Sections 34 (5) and 34(7) of the West Bengal Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation) Act, 1972 for violation of Section 17A of the said Act pending before the Learned Judicial Magistrate, 4th Court at Howrah.

2. The petitioners’ case is stated as follows:-

i. The petitioner no. 1 is a Pvt. Ltd Company incorporated under the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 having its registered office at “Purna Bhavan”, 5/1, Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Road, Kolkata-700020 and the petitioner no. 2 is a joint managing director of the petitioner no. 1 company.

ii. The petitioners had been engaged in the business of manufacturing, marketing and selling of biscuits and bakery products from its factory/manufacturing unit at Sankrail Food Park, Jaladhulagori Police Station-Sankrail, Post Office-Dhulagarh, District-Howrah.

iii. Petitioners stated that since the petitioners had been a manufacturer of “biscuit and bakery products” which was not an “agricultural produce” within the meaning of Section 2 (1)(a) of the West Bengal Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation) Act, 1972 and hence such product was not included in the schedule of “agricultural produce” appended to the said Act. As such, the provisions of the said Act, particularly with regard to the liability of submitting fortnightly return to the regulated market committee and paying of market fees to such market committee as envisaged under Section 17 and 17A of the said Act, did not and could not apply in respect of the petitioners being a manufacturer of “biscuit and bakery product” which was not an “agricultural produce” under the said Act. To that effect, the petitioners made a written representation dated October 27, 2007 to the Secretary of Howrah Zilla Market Committee.

iv. The petitioner no. 1 was issued license bearing no. 2820/60 dated 08.11.2007 issued by the Howrah Zilla Regulated Market Committee in its favour to operate as a “purchaser” of “agricultural produce” like flour, sugar, vanaspati and others under the provisions of the West Bengal Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation) Act, 1972, the West Bengal Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation) Rules, 1982 and the bye-laws made under the provisions of the said Act. The said license was valid up to 07.11.2008 and the said license was subsequently renewed in the following manner:

On 08/11/2009 for the period 08/11/2008 to 07/11/2009

On 08/11/2010 for the period 08/11/2009 to 07/11/2010

On 08/11/2011 for the period 08/11/2010 to 07/11/2011.

v. Meanwhile, the Howrah Zilla Regulated Market Committee issued a notice vide office memo no. 119/L&M dated 23/05/2008 asking the petitioner No.1 to submit fortnightly return as required under Section 17A of the West Bengal Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation ) Act,1972.

vi. To such, notice, the petitioners sent a written representation dated June 12, 2008 to the addressor of the aforesaid notice reiterating the point taken by the petitioners in its earlier letter dated October 27, 2007 and further pointing out that the petitioners could not have any liability to submit fortnightly return to the regulated market committee and payi