In a petition filed by Anil Kohli seeking quashment of the order passed by the respondents and also seeking directions to the respondents to de-seal shop of the petitioner i.e. M/S Shalimar Wine Shop, Wasser Lach Khazana Kishtwar and allow him to run the same as per the license already granted and renewed till 2023, Justice Javed Iqbal Wani of J&K High Court Jammu Wing after hearing Sr. Adv MK Bhardwaj appearing for petitioner and looking to the controversy in both the petitions from another angle i.e. particularly in view of serious allegations leveled by the respondents against the petitioner (though denied by the petitioner) qua the veracity and validity of the license in question, alleged fabrication and manipulation resorted to, and relocation of his business premises allegedly without following the provisions of the Act and the Rules particularly non-submission of requisite documents/NOCs inasmuch as running of the business activities by the petitioner under the said license illegally with the aid of insiders of the department warrants a thorough probe and enquiry by the official respondents and the said enquiry also becomes more imperative in view of nature of the trade carried on by the petitionerwhich in law is not being permitted to be carried on with absolute or uncontrolled liberty, but is subject to reasonable restrictions. The aforesaid issues otherwise also, being complicated disputed questions of fact may not appropriately be tried in these petitions, as such, also, would warrant a probe/enquiry by the official respondents.
Justice Javed Iqbal Wani after evaluating, scanning and considering the pleadings of the parties, material placed therewith, provisions of the Act and the Rules made there under, as well law as referred to hereinabove, the impugned orders dated 15-03-2020, 14-03-2020, 18-03-2020 and impugned communications dated15-04-2020, 13-05-2020, 22-05-2020 in both the petitions being WP(C) No. 922/2020 and WP (C) No. 1001/2020are quashed. However, same shall not come in the way of the official respondents to hold and conduct an enquiry into the validity and genuineness of the license of the petitioner as also all other matters related there with particularly those having been noticed and identified by the official respondents. It would be needless to reiterate that the said enquiry, if contemplated by the official respondents against the petitioner shall be conducted fairly, reasonably, transparently as also associating the petitioner therein.
Justice Javed Iqbal Wani further said made it clear that nothing in this Judgment shall be construed to be an expression of any opinion about the issues and matters those are left to be looked into in an enquiry, if chosen to be held by the official respondents. JNF