IMPORTANT POINT
No one can claim as against State right to carry on trade or business in liquor and State cannot be compelled to part with its exclusive right or privilege of manufacturing and selling liquor but when State decides to grant such right or privilege to others State cannot escape rigour of Article 14.

JUDGMENT :

L. Nageswara Rao, J.

Leave granted.

1. The Appellant is a manufacturer of spirits and holds a licence in the form of D-1 granted in the year 2017. A tender notice was issued for supply of country spirit in sealed bottles, in the State of Madhya Pradesh for the year 2018-2019. The condition imposed for participating in the tender was that the tenderer must have a licence for manufacturing, bottling and wholesale supply of country spirit in the State of Madhya Pradesh, issued in the form of CS-1 licence. Clause 2(i) of the tender notice dated 03.02.2018 was challenged by the Appellant on the ground that the stipulation pertaining to possession of CS-1 licence was contrary to Rule 3 of the Madhya Pradesh Country Spirit Rules, 1995 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Rules') since such licence could not be granted unless the distiller has participated in the tender process. That according to Rule 3, a successful tenderer is granted an area for supply of country spirit which would enable him to claim a CS-1 licence and CS-1-1B licence. The Writ Petition filed by the Appellant was dismissed. However, the High Court observed that the contention of the Appellant that he could not be granted a licence under the Rules unless an area was allotted to him was not borne out from Section 18 of the Excise Act, 1915 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act) or the Rules.

2. Thereafter, the Appellant submitted an application for grant of CS-1 licence on 09.04.2018. By an order dated 26.07.2018, the application filed by the Appellant for grant of CS-1 licence was rejected. Aggrieved by the said rejection, the Appellant filed a Writ Petition which was dismissed by the High Court. Hence, this appeal.

3. The order by which the request for issuance of CS-1 licence was rejected by the Respondent No. 2 was challenged by the Appellant as being in violation of Articles 14 and 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution of India. The Appellant alleged discrimination since eight other distillers in the State of Madhya Pradesh who were similarly situated to the Appellant, not possessing CS-1 and CS-1-1B licence were allowed to participate in the tender process. The Appellant relied upon the observations of the High Court in its judgment dated 21.03.2018, in Writ Petition No. 6525 of 2018 filed by the Appellant, that neither the Act nor the Rules made thereunder required allotment of an area for grant of CS-1 licence.

4. The High Court dismissed the Writ Petition by observing that allotment of an area was an imperative precondition for grant of CS-1 licence. The High Court further held that there was no fundamental right to trade in liquor and opined that the Appellant was not entitled to any relief. Clause 2 (i) of the tender notice dated 03.02.2018 issued by the Respondents provides that a distiller having a proper licence for manufacturing, bottling and wholesale supply of country spirit shall be eligible to participate in the tender process. The validity of the said condition was challenged by the Appellant in Writ Petition No. 6525 of 2018 in the High Court of Madhya Pradesh. The Appellant contended in said Writ Petition that according to the scheme of the Rules, a CS-1 licence will not be granted unless the area is allotted. A Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the Writ Petition finding no substance in the challenge to Clause 2 (i) of the tender notice. While dismissing the Writ Petition, the High Court observed that the allotment of an area was not a pre-requisite for grant of CS-1 licence. Subsequently, the Appellant submitted an application to the Excise Commissioner, Gwalior on 09.04.2018, requesting issuance of a CS-1 licence. The application for granting CS-1 licence was rejected on 26.07.2018 on the ground that the Appellant did not participate in the tender process, published on 20.02.2018 for the year 2018-19. There is no doubt that the Appellant has a D-1 licence. A perusal of Rule 3 would show that manufacturing, bottling and wholesale supply of c