THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE T. VINOD KUMAR Writ Petition No.11052 of 2025

ORDER

Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Government Pleader for Prohibition and Excise appearing for respondent Nos.1 to 4, and with the consent of the learned counsel appearing for the parties, the Writ Petition is taken up for hearing and disposal at the admission stage.

2. Shorn of unnecessary details, the case of the petitioner, in brief, is that he has been granted 2B Bar licence during the year 2022-2023 under the provisions of the Telangana Excise Act, 1968 (for short, ‘the Act’) read with the Telangana Excise (Grant of License of Selling by Bar and Conditions of License) Rules, 2005 (for short ’the Rules’); and that the said licence was not renewed for subsequent excise years 2023-2024 and

2024-2025.

3. Petitioner further contends that though the licence granted in his favour was not renewed after the expiry of excise year 2022-2023, the 3^rd respondent has issued a show cause notice dt.19.02.2025 seeking to cancel the licence issued in favour of the petitioner; that the petitioner had submitted explanation on 22.02.2025; and that the respondents- authorities without considering the aforesaid explanation have issued the impugned cancellation proceedings dt.04.03.2025, which action of the respondents-authorities it is contended as highly illegal and arbitrary.

4. Per contra, learned Government Pleader for Prohibition and Excise appearing on behalf of respondent Nos.1 to 4 would submit that the petitioner did not take part in the subsequent excise year auctions held during the year 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 and as such, the licence granted in his favour during the year 2022-2023 stood lapsed by virtue of operation of Rule 10(4) of the Rules.

5. Learned Government Pleader further submits that by virtue of the provisions of the Act and the Rules, any licence granted is only valid for one year and the same would stand lapsed on expiry of the excise year unless and until extended by a G.O.

6. I have taken note of the respective contentions urged.

7. This Court has come across cases where the authorities having issued show cause notices even though the licence granted is only for a period of one year and the same having stood expired at the end of the excise year.

8. The present Writ Petition is one such case where though the licence granted in favour of the petitioner had expired on 30.09.2023, the respondents-authorities by issuing show cause notice dt.19.02.2025 had called upon the petitioner to submit explanation as to why his licence should not be cancelled.

9. Firstly, it is to be noted that the notice can be issued only if the licence granted is in force/vogue. Admittedly, the licence granted in favour of the petitioner expired on 30.09.2023. Once, the licence having expired by efflux of time as per the conditions of licence granted in favour of the petitioner, there was no need/necessity for the 3^rd respondent to issue such notice calling upon the petitioner to submit explanation as to why licence should not be cancelled which is not even in force on the day when the authority had issued the said notice.

10. Taking advantage of issuance of such notice by the 3^rd respondent, the petitioner has now filed the present Writ Petition claiming to have submitted explanation and non-consideration of the same by the authority and seeking a direction to the respondents to restore the 2B bar licence expired earlier.

11. The course of action adopted by the 3^rd respondent authority in issuing notice and the petitioner claiming to have submitted explanation and non-consideration of the same, clearly indicates that the authority intended to create a cause of action for the benefit of petitioner for him to approach this Court and obtain interim order, even though the licence is not subsisting as of date.

12. For the aforesaid reason, this Court is of the view that not only the action of the petitioner in filing the present Writ Petition, but also the action of the r