Legal agreements explicitly stating non-renewability clauses are enforceable, denying claims for extensions based on perceived unequal treatment resulting from a pandemic.

JUDGMENT :

AMIT BANSAL, J.

1. All the aforesaid writ petitions have been filed seeking a direction to the respondents to renew the catering license awarded by the respondents in favour of the petitioners.

2. Since all the present writ petitions involve a common issue, all these petitions are being disposed of by way of a common judgment.

3. With the consent of the parties, W.P. (C) No. 18000/2025 is treated as the lead matter. Accordingly, the facts of the said petition are being considered for the purpose of this judgment.

4. On 15^th June 2019, the respondents issued a Letter of Award in favour of the petitioner for allotment of catering stall at platform no.1 of Haridwar Railway Station. Subsequently, a Master License Agreement dated 5^th March 2021 was entered into between the petitioner and the respondents in terms of the Catering Policy dated 27^th February 2017. The term of the license as per the Master License Agreement was for a period of five years with effect from 5^th March 2021. The Master License Agreement also provided that there would be no extension or renewal of the license term.

5. The grievance of the petitioner is that during the period of COVID-19 pandemic, there was a sharp decline in the footfall at the railway stations. Therefore, the petitioner could not run her catering stall to its complete potential. Accordingly, apart from the reduced license fee granted by the respondents, the petitioner seeks extension of her license period. The reliefs sought by the petitioner are set out below:

“(i) To issue the Writ of Mandamus or any other Writ or direction to declare the impugned Master License Agreement dated 05.03.2021 executed between Petitioner and Respondent No. 2 as illegal, arbitrary, unconstitutional, null and void-ab-initio and to quash/set aside the impugned Master License Agreement;

(ii) To issue the Writ of Mandamus or any other Writ or direction to declare the Clause No. 11 of the Commercial Circular No. 20 of2017 "Catering Policy 2017" dated 27.02.2017 issued by Respondent No. 3 as illegal, arbitrary, unconstitutional, null and void-ab-initio and to quash/set aside the Clause No. 11 of the impugned Commercial Circular No. 20 of 2017 "Catering Policy 2017" dated 27.02.2017 issued by Respondent No.3;

(iii) To issue the Writ of Mandamus or any other appropriate Writ, order or direction to the Respondents to extend the benefit of extension of license period to the Petitioner in proportionate to the reduce license fee during the COVID 19 pandemic period and as per the benefit given to the catering contractors of Hyderabad division as well as to the A.H. Wheeler and Co. Pvt. Ltd.

(iv) To grant relief to the petitioner as granted by this Hon'ble court vide its judgment/order dated 26.05.2025 in W.P. (C) No. 7323/2025 to the similar kind of licensees.”

6. The reliefs sought in all the present writ petitions are identical.

7. At the outset, counsel for the petitioners limit the reliefs in the present petitions only to the reliefs sought in prayer clauses (iii) and (iv) set out above [prayer clauses (iv) and (v) in W.P.(C) 2258/2026].

8. Counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioners places reliance on various orders passed by this Court from time to time where extension of seven months has been granted to similarly placed persons, illustratively, the judgment dated 26^th May 2025 passed by a coordinate bench in W.P. (C) No. 7323/2025 titledShaila Devi v. Union of India & Ors. and orders passed by this bench in W.P. (C)