ANUPAM GOSWAMI Vs. PRINCIPAL SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner seeks a restraint on the State Respondent from giving any effect to an order passed by the Principal Secretary, Finance Department on 28/2/2022 by which the State authority declined to interfere with the order passed by the Excise Commissioner on 15/9/2021 and was also of the view that the Collector of Excise had correctly settled the Excise License permanently in favour of the widow of the deceased licensee. The Principal Secretary was also of the view that the Collector had acted in consonance with Rule 14(6) of the Notification dtd. 29/7/2003 namely The West Bengal Excise (Selection of New Sites and Grant of License for Retail Sale of Liquor and Certain Other Intoxicants) Rules, 2003.

(2.) The petitioner is the brother of the deceased erstwhile licensee Rupam Goswami. Rupam Goswami died on 18/12/2014. After Rupam Goswami's death, the license was temporarily settled for the period of 6 months from 14/5/2015 - 31/12/2015 in favour of Priti Goswami and Jogomaya Goswami being the mother and wife of Rupam Goswami respectively. Priti Goswami, the mother of the erstwhile licensee died on 5/9/2015 leaving behind 3 sons of which the petitioner is one. The petitioner claims to have made several representations in October, 2015 and in January and July, 2016 for having the Excise License issued in favour of the petitioner in the place of Priti Goswami, his mother. The petitioner further claims that in response to petitioner's application under The Right to Information Act, 2005, the State Public Information Officer clarified by a letter dtd. 12/11/2018 that the Excise License has been settled by the Collector in favour of Jogomaya Goswami, the wife of the erstwhile license holder.

(3.) Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner places the orders passed by the Collector of Excise, South 24 Parganas on 14/5/2015 and the Excise Commissioner on 15/9/2021 and submits that there is no bar under sec. 37 of the Bengal Excise Act, 1909 or the 2003 Rules to prevent the authorities from issuing the permanent excise license in favour of the petitioner as the heir of Priti Goswami (the petitioner's mother).