IMPORTANT POINT
The acknowledgment certificate under the MSME Facilitation Act does not exempt existing units from obtaining necessary local permits.

JUDGMENT :

V.G. ARUN, J.

1. The writ petition is filed seeking a writ of Mandamus, commanding respondents 1 to 3 to afford adequate and effective police protection for the conduct of a Hotmix Plant by the petitioners, without interference from respondents 5 to 15.

2. The essential facts are under:

The petitioners are conducting a Hotmix Plant (tar mixing unit) in the name and style “N&T Hotmix.” The unit is set up in a leased property having an extent of 8.5 acres comprised in Survey No. 991/1, 2, 3 of Nellad village. According to the petitioners, the unit was functioning with all requisite licences/permissions, including deemed licence under the Kerala Panchayat Raj (Issue of licence to Factories, Trades, Entrepreneurship Activities and other services) Rules, 1996. In spite of the licences and permissions obtained, the 4th respondent Panchayat issued stop memos at the instance of respondents 5 to 15 and a Samara Samithi formed under their leadership. The stop memos were stayed by the Tribunal for Local Self Institutions. Now the petitioners have obtained Ext.P10 acknowledgment certificate under the Kerala Micro Small and Medium Enterprises Facilitation Act, 2019 (‘MSME Facilitation Act’ for short) and therefore, licence from the Panchayat is not necessary. The petitioners allege that the vehicles carrying the products from the petitioners' unit are being physically obstructed by respondents 5 to 15, thereby preventing the functioning of their unit. Even though the issue was brought to the notice of the jurisdictional Police, no action was taken to prevent the illegal obstruction. Hence, the writ petition.

3. Heard Senior Advocate Sri. Ranjith Thampan, assisted by Advocate Ajith Krishnan for the petitioners, Advocate M.H. Hanil Kumar for the 4th respondent Panchayat, Advocate Kaleeswaram Raj for respondents 5 to 11, 13 and 14 and the learned Government Pleader for respondents 1 to 3.

4. Learned Senior Counsel submitted that the Hotmix Plant was functioning on the strength of Exts.P4 to P6 consent/permission issued by the Pollution Control Board, the Fire and Rescue Department, as also the Factories and Boilers Department. As the 4th respondent Panchayat had failed to take a decision on the application for licence submitted in accordance with the relevant rules, the unit started functioning on the strength of a deemed licence under Section 236(3) of the Kerala Panchyat Raj Act, 1994. The memo issued by the Panchayat, requiring the petitioners to stop the functioning of the unit is stayed by the Tribunal for Local Self Government Institutions. More importantly, the unit has now been issued with Ext.P10 acknowledgment certificate under Section 5 of the MSME Facilitation Act, which is equivalent to licences, permissions, approvals, consents and the like, required under any State law. To buttress the argument, reference is made to the definition of the term ‘approval’ in Section 2(c) of the MSME Facilitation Act and effect of the acknowledgment certificate postulated in Section 6 of the Act. Reliance is also placed on the decision in Mohammed Sageer vs. Kannampara Grama Panchayat, 2023 KHC 2904, wherein this Court has held the provisions of the MSME Facilitation Act to be having an overriding effect, notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force. It is hence contended that the functioning of the petitioner's unit having all requisite licences and the conduct of which is essential for completing the urgent works of the PWD in Thiruvananthapuram District, cannot be forcibly stopped. The issue having been brought to the notice of respondents 1 to 3, the said officers were bound to provide adequate protection for functioning the unit, without obstruction from respondents 5 to 15.

5. Responding to the contentions of the Senior Counsel, Advoctae Kaleeswaram Raj submitted that the petitioners had earlier approached this Court by filing W.P. (C) No. 15965 of 2024 and therein, an interim order was passed on 16.04.