Court No. - 26
Case :- WRIT - C No. - 10770 of 2018 Petitioner :- Ram Sewak Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 2 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Punit Kumar Gupta Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C.
Hon'ble Mrs. Sangeeta Chandra,J.
This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner praying for quashing of the order dated 1.9.2017 passed by the District Supply Officer, Jhansi cancelling the Fair Price Shop license of the petitioner only on the ground of non submission of Medical Certificate of fitness as regards the illness of the licensee.
It has been submitted by Sri Punit Kumar Gupta, learned counsel, that the petitioner was suffering from acute heart disease and chronic bronchitis and therefore unfit to discharge his duties as licensee and he filed an application on 15.12.2014 before the District Supply Officer, Jhansi making a request to attach the quota of his shop with another Fair Price Shop dealer. The request of the petitioner was accepted and the quota of the petitioner's shop was attached to another Fair Price Shop dealer, namely Narmada Devi.
On 11.1.2017, the District Supply Officer, Jhansi passed an order that almost two years had elapsed and the petitioner's shop was still under attachment on account of his illness, therefore the shop was being suspended and the petitioner was directed to get himself examine by the Chief Medical Officer and submit a Medical Certificate.
The petitioner submitted an application along with Medical Certificate given by the Medical Officer, Community Health Centre, Mauranipur, District Jhansi on 19.1.2017, but the same was not accepted. The petitioner was asked to appear before the CMO, Jhansi. The petitioner appeared before the CMO, Jhansi, who refused to conduct a Medical examination only on the request of the petitioner and wanted official communication of such direction issued by the District Supply Officer, Jhansi. Thereafter, the respondent no. 3 issued a letter on 11.8.2017 to the petitioner to positively submit a report of the CMO, Jhansi within one week failing which the Fair Price Shop license of the petitioner shall be cancelled.
The petitioner again submitted an application for Medical examination before the CMO, Jhansi along with letter issued by the District Supply Officer, Jhansi, the CMO, Jhansi thereafter constituted a Medical Board and issued a Certificate of fitness to the petitioner on 4.9.2017, but by the time such a Certificate was issued to the petitioner, the respondent no. 3 had passed a cancellation order dated 1.9.2017, mentioning the facts regarding continued illness of the petitioner and various letters issued from time to time from the office of the District Supply Officer, Jhansi, asking him to get himself medically examined. On failure of the petitioner to submit the Medical Certificate issued by the Chief Medical Officer, Jhansi, the license has been cancelled.
It has been argued by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the petitioner was seriously ill and suffered from heart disease and therefore he had made a request for attachment of his quota of scheduled commodities to adjoining Fair Price Shop dealer. However, once he became fit, he repeatedly approached the office of the CMO, Jhansi and ultimately a Medical report was also submitted in his favour but with a bit of delay. The petitioner complied with the orders passed by the Licensing Authority, but he could not force the CMO, Jhansi or the Medical Board to examine him earlier and submit their report. The Fair Price Shop license of the petitioner has been cancelled without giving any finding with regard to irregularity, if any in the distribution of scheduled commodities by the petitioner as the petitioner was not operating the shop in question for the past three years due to his illness.
This Court finds substance in the argument made by the learned counsel for the petitioner. The impugned order of cancellation is set aside.
The matter is remanded back to the respondent no. 3 to look into the medical report submitted by the Medical Board constituted by the office of the CMO, Jhansi and pass appropriate orders thereon in accordance with law within a period of four weeks from the date a certified copy of this order is produced before him.
Order Date :- 23.3.2018 Arif