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Judgment
Anu Sivaraman, J
This writ petition is filed seeking the following prayers:
"(i) Call for the records leading to Ext.P2 order and issue a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ or order quashing the same, in the interest of justice.
(ii) Issue a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ order quashing Ext.P14, in the interest of justice.
(iii) Issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ or order directing the respondent to grant the petitioner temporary LE-5 license for possessing and sale of manufactured fireworks and chorsa crackers at the shop numbered MC No.46/732 (old MC No.XVII/1834) situated in Re-survey No.175 of Kollam East Village, Kollam Taluk, Kollam, for a period of 15 days for the upcoming Christmas Season and New Year, commencing from 20.12.2021 to 03.01.2021, in the interest of justice."
Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Government Pleader.
It is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the petitioner had submitted application for temporary LE-5 license in respect of the Christmas and New Year season for a period of 15 days commencing from 20.12.2021 to 03.01.2022. The said application has been dismissed stating that Ext.P14 Circular provides that the application ought to have been filed within 60 days prior to the festival season. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that there is no interdiction in the Act or the Rules requiring submission of applications for grant of license 60 days prior to the festival season and that the embargo, if any, in Ext.P14 with regard to submission of an application within 60 days is therefore illegal and ultra virus.
It is further submitted that on an earlier occasions, when the application for temporary license submitted by the petitioner had been rejected on the ground that his father was involved in a crime under the Explosive Rules and that the shop is situated in a crowded area, Exts.P10 and P11 judgments had been issued directing the grant of license. The learned counsel for the petitioner therefore contends that the application for temporary license submitted by the petitioner is liable to be allowed in the light of Exts.P10 and P11 judgments.
The learned Government Pleader would submit that the application submitted by the petitioner was not within time as provided in Ext.P14.
On a consideration of Ext.P14 Circular, I notice that there is absolutely no interdiction therein that applications for temporary license have to be submitted 60 days prior to the festival in question. What is stated in Ext.P14 is only that the District Authorities may receive applications for grant of license 60 days prior to the festival. The rejection of the application on the ground that it was not submitted prior to 60 days is therefore completely untenable.
Ext.P2 order of rejection is, therefore, set aside. There will be a direction to the respondent to take up the application submitted by the petitioner and to consider and pass orders on the same, without reference to the objection that the application is not filed prior to 60 days from the festival for which temporary license is sought. Exts.P10 and P11 judgments shall also be taken note of while passing orders as directed above. Orders shall be passed within a period of one week from today.
This writ petition is ordered accordingly.