PRADEEP ARORA Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule, made returnable forthwith. Heard finally by consent of parties.

(2.) The petitioner is a medical practitioner as General and Paediatric Surgeon and runs a Nursing Home, viz. Arora Hospital, on the first floor of Shreewardhan Complex, Ramdaspeth, Nagpur. The petitioner claims that the Nursing Home is duly registered under the Maharashtra Medical Council Act, 1965 and the certificate of registration to that effect issued on 21-12-1993 is placed on record.

(3.) The challenge in this petition is to the definition of "establishment" under Section 2(4) of the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2017 ("the new Act"), brought into force with effect from 7-9-2017, to the extent it applies to the profession and the establishment of any medical practitioner (including hospital, dispensary, clinic, polyclinic, maternity home and such others) and requiring such establishment to comply with the provision of Section 6 in respect of its registration with the Facilitator if the employees engaged are ten or more, and Section 7 regarding intimation of it to be given if the strength of the employees engaged is less than ten. As a result of registration of such establishment with the Facilitator, the provisions of the said Act become applicable and the employer is under statutory obligation to comply with it. The challenge is on the ground that it violates the guarantee of the petitioner contained in Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India to practise profession or to carry on any occupation or business and that it is beyond the competence of the State Legislature.