BRUHATH BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE Vs. MAHTANI VENTURES

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The question that falls for our consideration in these appeals is whether the 'power' to cancel a trade licence certificate issued under the provisions of Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976, being a quasi judicial in nature, could be delegated by the Commissioner, to the Health Officer, in exercise of the powers of delegation vested in him under section 66 of the said Act?

(2.) The learned single Judge, while dealing with the writ petitions on merits, considered two questions as formulated and reproduced in paragraph 13 of the impugned order. The first question was whether the Commissioner is authorized to delegate the power to cancel the licences when he alone is vested with the said power under the Act?; and second was Whether the second respondent (Health Officer) has authority to cancel the licence as he had issued the licence having regard to section 21 of the Karnataka General Clauses Act, 1899?

(3.) Before we make any reference to the contentions urged by learned counsel for the parties in support of their case and referring to the Judgments relied upon in support thereof, we would like to have a close look at the provisions of the KMC Act, we are concerned with in these appeals, to which our attention was specifically invited to by learned counsel for the parties. It would be advantageous to re-produce relevant provisions, based on which the arguments were advanced before us. Sections 64, 66 and 67 of the KMC Act read thus: