A G NARVEL Vs. B I NHINGLAVHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) RULE.

(2.) RESPONDENT waives service. By consent. Rule made returnable and heard forthwith.

(3.) AT the hearing of the Petition, on behalf of the Petitioner, it is contended that there has been no violation of Rule 32 of the Rules framed under the Bombay Police Act. Rule 32 of the Act reads as under :- " If any person keeping a place of public entertainment knowingly permits prostitutes for the purpose of their trade or persons of notoriously bad character to meet or remain in such place, the Commissioner of Police shall have the power in his discretion at any time to cancel a licence granted under these rules or to suspend it for such period as he may specify and direct such person to close the place either permanently or for such period as he may specify. The persons to whom such direction is issued by the Commissioner of Police shall forthwith comply with such direction. " It is thus clear from the said rule that in the event a person keeps a place of public entertainment and knowingly permits prostitutes for the purpose of their trade or a person of notoriously bad character to meet or remain in such place the Commissioner of Police shall in the exercise of his powers cancel the licence granted under this Rule or to suspend it for such time as he may specify and direct such person to close the place either permanently or for such period as he may specify. The person to whom such direction is issued by the Commissioner of Police shall forthwith comply with such direction. In other words, the place must be used for public entertainment. Secondly, the person must knowingly permit prostitutes to operate from the said place for the purpose of their trade or allow persons of notoriously bad character to meet or remain in such place. In the instant case, it is not the allegation that there were persons of notoriously bad character remaining in the place. The allegation seems to be that the place was being used by prostitutes for their trade. Under Section 2 (1) of the Bombay Police Act, place of public entertainment is defined and it includes a Lodging House. The question is whether prostitutes were permitted to carry on trade knowingly by the persons of the said Lodge.