The petitioner has had a rice mill for over 20 years in Kottagudi village, Tiruvadanai Taluk, Ramanathapuram District. After the introduction of the scheme of licensing rice mills under the Madras Act (XXIX of 1949), the petitioner obtained the requisite licence. The licensing is now regulated by the Madras Rice Mills Licensing Order, 1955.

On 1st August, 1955, the third respondent Balakrishnan Chettiar applied to the Collector for a license to work a rice mill of his in Kottagudi Village. It was common ground that the site selected by him for his mill was only about 40 feet away from the petitioner’s mill. The petitioner lodged his objection to the grant of the license sought by the third respondent. On 9th January, 1955, the Collector rejected the application that had been preferred by the third respondent.

On 3rd January, 1956, the third respondent preferred what purported to be an appeal to the Government against the order of the Collector, dated 9th November, 1955, refusing the license for which the third respondent had applied. That petition was forwarded by the Government to the Commissioner of Civil Supplies on 19th January, 1956. The petitioner intervened again and lodg