The resolution of disputes under advertising agreements must adhere to arbitration clauses when external conditions prevent contract fulfillment.

ORDER

The petitioner has filed this writ petition seeking issuance of Writ of Certiorari to call for the records of the second respondent bearing reference 4944/A1/TNSTC/2021 dated 02.08.2021 and 4945/A1/TNSTC/2021 dated 02.08.2021 and quash the same.

2.The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner has been engaged in the business of distributing and marketing several products and also marketing advertising space in various mediums and the first respondent has been operating buses, inter alia in Coimbatore, Tirupur and Nilgiris Districts. While so, the first respondent had offered advertising space in the buses plying on the aforesaid routes, whereby boards measuring 4'X3' could be fixed on the rear side of the buses and boards measuring 1'.6X1'.9 could be fixed on the back side of the driver partition on the buses that are being operated by the first respondent. The first respondent had called for tenders from interested parties to advertise in the spaces on the buses being operated by them.

3.The learned counsel for the petitioner further submitted that the petitioner was interested in displaying their advertisements in the buses being operated by the first respondent and made a bid for the same and the second respondent vide their communication dated 22.10.2019 called upon the petitioner to pay the required licence fee and create an agreement. In this regard, an agreement dated 05.12.2019 was entered into between the petitioner and the first respondent. As per the above agreement dated 05.12.2019, entered into between the petitioner and the first respondent, there is a clear obligation on the part of the first respondent to carry the advertisement board of the petitioner in 585 buses of Ooty - Tiruppur Region for the period of 11 months from 05.12.2019 to 05.11.2020 and the agreement could be renewed for two more blocks of 11 + 11 months upon such enhancements of license fee and to operate 511 buses in the Coimbatore region as per the award letter dated 10.02.2020 from 04.02.2020 to 03.01.2021 and renewal thereof in three blocks of 11 months each. While so, during March 2020, the spread of Covid 19 forced the Central Government to invoke the provisions of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and consequently, the Tamil Nadu Government also imposed a total lock down in the State of Tamil Nadu. Consequently, the first respondent did not operate any buses from 23.03.2020 to 06.09.2020, thereby the terms of the agreement dated 05.12.2019 for the Ooty-Tiruppur region and the award for the Coimbatore Region as seen under letter 4933/A1/AM(Civil)/TNSTC (CBE)/2020 could not be adhered to by the first respondent.

4.The learned counsel for the petitioner would further submit that vide three letters dated 03.06.2020, addressed to the second respondent, the petitioner represented to the respondents that the buses belonging to the first respondent did not operate as contemplated under the above agreement, entered into between the petitioner and the first respondent and therefore, the license fee waiver should be given for the period from 23.03.2020 to 06.09.2020. But, the second respondent vide their letter dated 26.09.2020 had made a demand of Rs.67,74,144/- towards license fee from the petitioner, which is unsustainable owing to the fact that the respondents did not ply the required number of buses due to the lock down imposed by the Tamil Nadu Government. Though the petitioner made several requests to the respondents seeking license fee waiver, the second respondent through the impugned letters dated 02.08.2021 have refused to consider the representations of the petitioner and also cancelled the license given to the petitioner, with