Sujeet Kumar vs The State Of Bihar
2022 Latest Caselaw 1179 Patna

         IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                      Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.6257 of 2021
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Sujeet Kumar, son of Naresh Prasad Sahu, resident of Village- Dhira, P.S.- Halsi, District- Lakhisarai.

... ... Petitioner/s Versus

1. The State of Bihar, through the Principal Secretary, Food and Consumer Protection Department, Old Secretariat, Patna

2. The Collector, District- Lakhisarai.

3. The Sub-Divisional Officer, Lakhisarai, District- Lakhisarai.

4. Chandan Kumar son of Rajendra Sao, Resident of Village and P.O.- Dheera, P.S.- Halsi, District- Lakhisarai

... ... Respondent/s ====================================================== Appearance :

For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Rajeev Kumar Labh, Adv. For the Respondent/s : Mr. S. Raza Ahmad, AAG-5 For the Respondent No.4: Mr. N.K. Agrawal, Sr. Adv..

Ms. Preety Kunwar, Adv.

====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJAN GUPTA and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MOHIT KUMAR SHAH ORAL JUDGMENT (Per: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJAN GUPTA)

Date : 16-02-2022

The present petition has been filed for

quashing the order dated 18.12.2020 passed by the

learned Collector, Lakhisarai in Miscellaneous Appeal

Case No. 03 of 2019 whereby and where-under,

appeal filed by the private Respondent No. 4 has been

virtually allowed in as much as the selection made in

the past including that of the petitioner herein has

been set aside and the District Level Selection

Committee, Lakhisarai has been directed to conduct Patna High Court CWJC No.6257 of 2021 dt.16-02-2022

selection afresh on the basis of the then existing

application forms.

2. The learned counsel for the petitioner

has submitted that the impugned order dated

18.12.2020 is illegal and violative of the statutory

provisions, hence is fit to be set aside, however, the

petitioner is not averse to the idea of preferring a

revision petition against the order dated 18.12.2020.

3. Per contra, the learned counsel for the

State has submitted that as far as the petitioner is

concerned, he is an accused in one criminal case

bearing Halsi P.S. Case No. 96 of 2015 dated

29.07.2015, but the petitioner had deliberately

concealed the pendency of the said criminal case and

had not disclosed the same in his application form. It is

further submitted that the private Respondent No. 4

herein namely Chandan Kumar had challenged the

recommendation made by the District Level Selection

Committee, Lakhisarai in its meeting held on

15.12.2018 including the selection of the petitioner,

before the Hon'ble Patna High Court by filing a writ

petition bearing CWJC No. 2403 of 2019 and a co-

ordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated

26.04.2019 had disposed of the said writ petition with Patna High Court CWJC No.6257 of 2021 dt.16-02-2022

liberty to the Respondent No. 4 to file appropriate

appeal before the District Magistrate, Lakhisarai. It

appears that thereafter, the private Respondent No. 4

had filed an appeal before the learned Collector,

Lakhisarai and upon consideration, it was found that

the petitioner had concealed the factum of pendency

of the criminal case against him and had managed to

obtain a character certificate issued from the office of

the Superintendent of Police, Lakhisarai, concealing

the factum of pendency of criminal case against him,

hence, the learned Collector, Lakhisarai, by the

impugned order dated 18.12.2020 had set aside the

entire selection process and remanded the matter back

to the District Level Selection Committee, Lakhisarai

to consider the entire facts and circumstances and

take a decision afresh on the basis of the then

submitted application forms. It has also been

submitted that the District Level Selection Committee,

Lakhisarai had thereafter, in its meeting held on

29.12.2021 has recommended the name of the private

Respondent No.4 for the purposes of grant of license of

the fair price shop. It is also submitted that the learned

Advocate of the petitioner was given adequate

opportunity of hearing by the learned Collector, Patna High Court CWJC No.6257 of 2021 dt.16-02-2022

Lakhisarai. Thus, there is no ambiguity as far as the

impugned order dated 18.12.2020 is concerned and, in

fact, much water has flown since not only the

licensing authority has cancelled the license of the

petitioner in compliance of the impugned order dated

18.12.2020 passed by the learned District Magistrate,

Lakhisarai in Miscellaneous Appeal Case No. 3 of 2019,

but the District Level Selection Committee, Lakhisarai

has taken a decision afresh on the basis of the then

existing application forms in its meeting held on

29.12.2021.

4. Having regard to the facts and

circumstances of the case and having considered the

materials on record, we find that as far as the order

dated 18.12.2020 passed by the learned Collector,

Lakhisarai is concerned, the same does not suffer from

any infirmity, however, in case the petitioner is

aggrieved by the recommendation made by the

District Level Selection Committee, Lakhisarai in its

meeting held on 29.12.2021, we grant liberty to the

petitioner to avail the alternative remedy of filing a

revision petition/ representation before the concerned

Divisional Commissioner and in case such a revision

petition/ representation is filed within a period of four Patna High Court CWJC No.6257 of 2021 dt.16-02-2022

weeks from today, the same shall be disposed of by a

reasoned and speaking order, in accordance with law,

within a period of six weeks, thereafter.

5. The writ petition stands disposed of on

the aforesaid terms.

(Rajan Gupta, J)

( Mohit Kumar Shah, J)

Tiwary/-

AFR/NAFR                NAFR
CAV DATE                N/A
Uploading Date          21.02.2022
Transmission Date       N/A