JYOTI VIDEO THEATRE Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this judgment I propose to dispose of C. W. P. Nos. 1043, 6179, 6287, 9294, 9793, 11327 of 1988; C. W. P. Nos. 617, 1605, 1712, 1870, 2413, 3411, 4779, 5496-A 5859, 8982 of 1989; C. W. P. Nos. 1611, 5106, 5723, 8005, 12877 of 1990 and C. W. P. No. 1809 of 1991, as common question of law and fact are involved. For facility of reference, facts as averred in C. W. P. No. 8982 of 1989 are being adverted to.

(2.) The petitioner-firm M/s. Jyoti Video Theatre, at Uchana, District Jind, has been carrying on business of Video Parlour and exhibiting pictures through the media of Video Cassette Recorder (in Short V.C. R.). It had been granted temporary licence for exhibiting Video films under the provisions of the Punjab Cinemas (Regulations) Act, 1952, as applicable to Haryana, read with the Punjab Cinemas (Regulations) Rules, 1952, as applicable to Haryana (hereinafter referred to as the 1952, Act and 1952 Rules respectively). The petitioner-firm had asked for the extension of the licence and since the same was not being granted the petitioners approached this Court as they apprehended that the respondent-authorities would not allow the petitioners in all these cases to run the Video Parlour / Theatres. The petitioners filed, all these writ petitions on the ground that for running Video shows there was no requirement for obtaining licences. In C. W. P. No. 8982 of 1989, an order was passed on July, 1989, by the District Magistrate, Jind, refusing to grant licence for future to the petitioner in this case in view of R. 3(iv) of the 1952 Rules. There is an additional ground of challenge to this order in writ petition.

(3.) There is an Act known as Punjab Entertainment Duty Act, 1955 (hereinafter referred to as the Entertainment Duty Act), which is applicable in the State of Haryana also, under which the State Government is authorised to levy duty on various types of entertainments. Under 1955 Act, the erstwhile State of Punjab had framed Rules known as the Punjab Entertainment Duty Rules, 1956, which are applicable to the State of Haryana also (hereinafter called the Entertainment Duty Rules). These rules have been amended from time to time by the State of Haryana. In the year 1984, by Haryana Act 10 of 1984, S.3-A was inserted in the Entertainment Duty Act. Section 3-A as introduced in 1984, reads as under : -