PATEL TIMBER Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is under Article 226 of the Constitution of India whereby and whereunder the decision as contained in letter no. 06-Aa.M/01-2015/2016/2966 dated 08.09.2016 (with regard to petitioner no. 1) and letter no. 06- Aa.M/01-2015/2016/2798 dated 22.08.2016 (with regard to petitioner no. 2), issued by respondent no. 4 in terms of which the petitioners have been directed to shift their saw mills beyond five kilometers from the notified area, failing which the petitioners' saw mill registration would be cancelled; and further for direction upon the respondent-authorities to allow the petitioners to process the stocks and deal with and sell of the finish product in the light of order passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Special Leave to Appeal Nos. 22423- 22460/2018 vide order dated 08.04.2019.

(2.) The brief fact of the case of the petitioner is that licence to run the saw mill was issued to petitioner no. 1 vide registration no. 06/1994 and was renewed up-to 2016 and thereafter, the petitioner no. 1 has filed an application for its renewal on 05.12.2016, which is still pending. So far petitioner no. 2 is concerned, licence to run the saw mill was issued to him vide registration no. 11/1994, which was renewed up-to the year 2016 and thereafter, the petitioner no. 1 and 2 have filed applications for its renewal on 15.12.2016, which is still pending.

(3.) Meanwhile, the competent authorities of the State of Jharkhand has come out with a decision dated 08.09.2016 and 22.08.2016, which are impugned in this writ petition, directing the petitioners to shift their saw mills beyond five kilometers from the notified area, in view of the judgment passed by Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of T.N. Godavarman Thirumulkpad Vs. Union of India, 1997 2 SCC 267, which prompted the petitioner to approach this Court by filing W.P. (C) No. 241 of 2017, in which, the Coordinate Bench of this Court while passing order on the Interlocutory Application, being I.A. No. 8900 of 2017 filed in that writ petition, vide order dated 27.11.2017 has modified the order dated 30.01.2017, by which, the co-ordinate Bench has passed the order of status quo as on today with respect to petitioners' saw mill, to the effect that "In the meantime, the petitioners are permitted to operate their saw mills pending adjudication", and the writ petition was posted on 11.12.2017 under the heading "For Orders" and ultimately, the writ petition was disposed of vide order dated 08.03.2018, whereby and whereunder batch of writ petitions, including the writ petition of the petition, was dismissed with liberty to file respective applications before the concerned licensing authorities for consideration of their cases of renewal/grant of licenses which shall be considered by said authorities in accordance with law and appropriate decision shall be taken within a period of 2 (two) months from the date of receipt of respective applications from the petitioners on shifting of their saw mills beyond the distance of 05 kms. from the nearest boundary of the notified forest.