The Bombay High Court dismissed a writ petition challenging the order dated 24/09/2018 passed by the Commissioner of Excise who canceled the liquor license bearing for the retail sale of IMFL & CL for consumption standing in the name of Late Mr. Joaquim C.Souza Ferrao, and also the order passed by the Commissioner of Excise vide which, the Appellate Authority /Chief Secretary rejected the appeal vide order dated 02/05/2019.
The Court observed that the transfer of liquor license is at the discretion of the concerned authority and when the legal heirs of the deceased license holder applied for cancellation, the excise Commissioner was duty-bound to cancel it.
Brief Facts:
By way of a Deed of Partnership executed on 21/12/2009 between the petitioner and Mr. Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao, the petitioner was permitted to operate a bar and restaurant wherein the sale of liquor was undertaken on the basis of a license issued in the name of Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao. This Deed of Partnership was executed on 21/12/2009. However, on 25/11/2013, Mr. Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao expired. Admittedly, the license was issued in the name of said Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao.
The contention of the learned Counsel for the petitioner was that in view of clause No.15 of the Deed of Partnership, the petitioner was entitled to transfer the license in his name. Clause 15 provided: “That the death or retirement of the First Party shall not cause the dissolution of the partnership business, but his legal heirs shall be joined as partners and shall have the same right as the First Party. However, in case of the death of the Second Party, the partnership shall come to an end and the rights of the Second Party shall have no right to the business. And in such case, the entire business shall belong to the First Party and shall be free to transfer the license in his name.”
However, respondents No.3 and 4 being the legal heirs of the late Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao applied for cancellation of their license with the Excise Department on 19/06/2018, who canceled the license. Though the petitioner challenged the said order in appeal, the same was rejected by the Appellate Authority.
Observations of the Court:
The Court noted that the said clause nowhere permits the petitioner to apply for transfer of the liquor license in his name in the event of the death of the license holder. At the most such clause shows that the legal heirs were supposed to join as partners upon the death of the original license holder and in that case, the license was required to be transferred in the name of such legal heirs.
The Court observed that the interpretation which has been tried to be projected by the petitioner of clause 15 cannot be accepted. First of all, the transfer of a liquor license is at the discretion of the concerned authority, and when the legal heirs of the deceased license holder applied for cancellation, the excise Commissioner was duty-bound to cancel it.
The decision of the Court:
The Bombay High Court, dismissing the petition, held that the appellate authority in its impugned order has rightly observed that the petitioner is trying to mix the issues with regard to the Deed of Partnership with that of transfer of license under the provisions of the Goa Excise Duty Act.
Case Title: Dattaram Govind Naik vs State of Goa
Coram: Hon’ble Justice Bharat P. Deshpande
Case no.: WRIT PETITION NO. 245 OF 2020
Advocate for the Petitioner: Mr. C.A. Coutinho
Advocate for the Respondents: Mr. S.P. Munj, and Mr. J. Mulgaonkar
Read Judgment @LatestLaws.com
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