The authority has jurisdiction to reject an application for a license if it contains any false or fraudulent or misleading statement.

ORDER : These three petitions challenge the order of the Import Control Authorities refusing the grant of licences to the petitioners in respect of certain licensing periods W.P. 566 of 1962 relates to two periods-January to July 1960 and July to December 1956. The petitioner applied for import licence for "Paper, other sorts'. These applications were kept pending till recognition of transfer of quota rights to the petitioner firm and the petitioner was directed to get the changes in the constitution of the petitioner partnership and the transfer of quota rights recognised. This was apparently approved by the Chief Controller of Imports in 1958 only, and by that order that authority stated that this recognition of the transfer of quota rights should be effective only for subsequent periods. This was followed by the rejection of the applications of the petitioner for the licensing periods mentioned above. This matter was brought before this court in W. P. 782 of 1959. That petition was allowed and the Chief Controller of Imports was directed to dispose of the applications on the basis that the petitioner firm was entitled to the quota rights from the date of the actual reconstitution of the firm and not from the date of recognition by the Chief Controller. Therefore, the Controller took up the applications for disposal, bill called upon the petitioner to show cause why the applications should not be rejected as the change in the constitution was not disclosed. The petitioner submitted its explanation, but the authority took the view that by failing to disclose the fact that there was a change in the constitution of the partnership, the petitioner had made certain false statements in its applications and such applications in which false and misleading statements were made, were liable to be rejected. This order is canvassed in W. P. 566 of 1962. In the other two writ petitions, licence was sought for the import of hinges. The order of the authority in so far as W. P. 600 of 1962 is concerned was that the import policy on the date of consideration of the application did not permit the import of this item of goods and for that reason the application relevant to W. P. 600 of 1962 was dismissed. In respect of the application leading to W. P. 602 of 1962, the import authority relied on two grounds in dismissing it, one was that the application was tainted by suppression of fact and the other that on the date of the consideration of the application, no import was permissible for this item.

2. In the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the Joint Chief Controller of Imports, it is contended that according to the instructions contained in the import policy books, certain information is specifically called for from the parties who apply for licences with particular reference to firms the constitution of which might have changed resulting in the alteration of the eligibility for the import quota applied for. Since this is a very necessary piece of information in order to deal with the grant of licences, the petitioner having been round to have given false information in its application in this regard, the application was liable to be rejected and was rightly rejected. In support of the ground that at the time of the consideration of the applications the import of hinges was prohibited, reference has been made to paragraph 31 of the Red Book, relevant to the period April to September 1961. According to this instruction, the Department appears to have devised certain ad hoc rules as it were for dealing with the issue of import licences against applications for back periods. It is stated that in terms of those instructions, an import licence could not be granted for a back period. Generally speaking, when, in a case there is a delay in dealing with an application, and the consideration of the application is taken up beyond that period, no licences are granted against applications pertaining to periods other than the immediately prece