The Competent Authority has discretion in fixing the Country Cap, and judicial review is limited in economic policy decisions.

JUDGMENT

Navin Chawla, J. - These petitions have been filed by the petitioners feeling aggrieved of the non-registration by the respondent no.2- the Narcotics Commissioner, of their contracts for import of poppy seeds from Turkey.

2. It is the case of the petitioners that in terms of the Foreign Trade Policy, poppy seeds are freely importable, subject only to the conditions mentioned in Clause 3, Chapter 12, Section II of Schedule 1 of the Import Policy. The said conditions inter alia require import contracts to be compulsorily registered with the respondent no.2.

3. Clause 17 of the National Policy on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances provides that the import of poppy seeds shall continue till self-sufficiency is achieved and the only condition for such import is that the poppy seeds should have been imported from a country authorized internationally to grow opium poppy for export and that it has been legitimately cultivated.

4. The petitioners further place reliance on the Public Notice dated 25.06.2019 containing "the Guidelines for Registration of the Sales Contracts for import of poppy seeds from Turkey" (hereinafter referred to as the "Guidelines") to contend that the determination of the Country Cap for the purpose of import of poppy seeds from Turkey has to be made on the basis of the recommendation by a Committee comprising of the Narcotics Commissioner; one representative of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT); and one representative of the Department of Revenue, and is to be based upon the stock and production of the poppy seeds as communicated by the Turkish Grain Board (TMO) or the Turkish Embassy in India.

5. The petitioners further place reliance on the MOU executed between India and Turkey on trade in poppy seeds and specifically Clause 2 thereof to contend that the said Agreement also acknowledges that the determination of the Country Cap shall be made by the Government of India in consultation with the Government of Turkey and after taking into account the production of poppy seeds in Turkey in a crop year, balance from the previous crop years and domestic or other export requirement of Republic of Turkey.

6. Based on the above documents, the learned counsels for the petitioners submit that the purpose of fixing the Country Cap for import from Turkey is only to ensure that the import is of legally grown poppy seeds. Once the quantity of legally grown and exportable poppy seeds is available in Turkey and the same is verified by the Committee constituted under the Guidelines, the said quantity has to be fixed as the Country Cap. The respondents cannot arbitrarily deny or restrict the Country Cap in spite of legally grown opium poppy being available in Turkey for export and the recommendation of the Committee appointed under the guidelines verifying the said fact.

7. On the facts of the present case, they submit that the respondent no.1 had fixed 18000 MTs as a Country Cap on 09.08.2019. The Turkish Embassy has informed the respondent no.1 that there is 8438 MTs quantity of poppy seeds still available in Turkey for export to India for 2019-20. Based on the availability of poppy seeds in Turkey, the Committee as mentioned in the Guidelines, recommended that the Country Cap be increased in line with the licit cultivation of opium poppy carried out by Turkey. However, in spite of such recommendation, the respondents have arbitrarily confined the Country Cap for import of poppy seeds to 18000 MT.

8. The learned counsels for the petitioners submit that therefore, the determination of the Country Cap by the respondents is not only arbitrary but is also against the Foreign Trade Policy, the Guidelines and the MOU mentioned hereinabove. They submit that due to such arbitrary fixation of the Country Cap, not only the petitioners would suffer as they have already entered into contracts for import o