S. H. SHETH, S. L. TALATI, J.

( 1 ) THESE Civil Applications have been filed by the Union of India and the Deputy Director Sugar and Vanaspati Government of India claiming from each of the respondents certain amounts under the following circumstances.

( 2 ) SPECIAL Civil Applications Nos. 1235 of 1972 1234 of 1972 1236 of 1972 1232 of 1972 1233 of 1972 1262 of 1972 and 1233 of 1972 were filed by the present respondents in this Court. In those Special Civil Applications they challenged the price of sugar fixed by the Central Government at Rs. 24. 59 P. per quintal for the year 1972-73. They obtained an interim order in all these petitions from this Court by virtue of which the controlled price of Rs. 124. 59 P. per quintal was frozen and the respondents who are sugar manufacturers were allowed to sell levy sugar at Rs. 150/per quintal. Obviously therefore under the force of an interim order made by this Court in each of those petitions the respondents sold levy sugar at a price higher than the controlled price and recovered from the State Government Union Government or their nominees more than what they were entitled to. Thereafter the respondents did not proceed with the petitions but they withdrew them the interim order made by this Court therefore ceased to be operative in each of the petitions.

( 3 ) THE question which thereafter arose was this:- How should the excess realisation made by the respondents be dealt with ? Such situations arose in different parts of the country also. Therefore Parliament passed The Levy Sugar Price Equalisation Fund Act 1976 under which the Central Government has constituted Levy Sugar Price Equalisation Fund into which such excess realisation are directed to be paid. On behalf of the Central Government Mr. Vakil has stated to us that the amounts recoverable from the present respondents excluding Khedut Sahkari Khand Udyog Mandali Ltd. petitioner in Special Civil Application No. 1223 of 1972 come to Rs. 54 79 597

( 4 ) THE Order which the respondents challenged in the writ petitions was Sugar (Price Determination) Order 1972. It was published on 15th June 1972. On that very day the Levy (Sugar Control) Order 1972 was published under which as stated above the sugar manufacturers were required to sell sugar to the Union Government State Government or their nominees at the controlled price of Rs. 124. 59 p. for Dgrade sugar. All those Special Civil Applications were withdrawn on 12th March 1973.

( 5 ) THEREAFTER the present petitioners filed these Civil Applications on 16 September 1975 essentially for the purpose of taking steps to undo the wrong which the respondents had done under the cover of the interim order of this Court. In other words the present petitioners pray for directing the respondents to pay into the Levy Sugar Price Equalisation Fund the excess price recovered by them under the protective cover of the interim order of this Court.

( 6 ) MR. Vakil who appears on behalf of the present petitioners has raised two contentions before us. His first contention is that the Court should exercise its inherent jurisdiction to deprive the respondents of the undue advantage or benefit which they tool; under the cover of the interim order of this Court. The second contention which he has raised is that Levy Sugar Price Equalisation Fund Act 1976 now requires the respondents as all other sugar manufacturers to deposit into that Fund the excess realisations made by them. It is not in dispute before us that the respondents could sell sugar to Union Government to State Government or their nominees at Rs. 150/per quintal only on account of the interim order made by this Court which had staved the implementation of the controlled price fixed by the Central Government at Rs. 124. 59 P. But for interim order of this Court they would have been required to sell sugar to the Central Government and others at the controlled price of Rs. 124. 59 P. per quintal. Therefore it was only on account of the interim or

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