SOCIAL SERVICE WELFARE SOCIETY Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Prayer in this writ petition, filed under Articles 226/227 of the Constitution of India is for quashing the letters dated 11.09.2020 (Annexures P-15 to P-21), whereby the respondent-department has cancelled/terminated the Concession Agreements dated 29.12.2004, vide which the petitioners-societies were given permission to run Industrial Training Institutes (for short 'ITIs') since 2004 onwards.

(2.) Learned senior counsel, appearing for the petitioners-societies, has argued that all the petitioners-societies are registered in Punjab and the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board (for short 'PIDB') had invited bids in the year 2003 for implementation of development projects of ITIs. The petitioners-societies were the successful bidders for the ITIs situated at Abohar, Khadur Sahib, Banarasi, Nathana, Pratap Pura, Kahnuwan and Mukerian.

(3.) Learned senior counsel has further submitted that a concession agreement dated 29.12.2004 was entered into between the petitionerssocieties and the respondent-department, a copy of one of such agreements is annexed as Annexure P-1. It is further submitted that as per the agreement, the concessionaires, i.e the petitioners herein, had entered into a commercial public private partnership with respondent-department for the upgradation and management of the ITIs. As per the agreement, the concessionaires are required to pay 'Concession Fees' to the Concessioning Authority under the Clause 'Concession Fee' in terms of price proposal as executed by PIDB.