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| Court puts cost on Govt | | Delay in registration of industrial unit | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Oct 10: While rejecting the submissions made by the Advocate General, Justice JP Singh of J&K High Court Jammu Wing in a petition filed by non-state subject seeking permanent registration for establishing industrial unit directed the respondents to consider the case for its permanent registration and also burden the state government with exemplary costs of 30,000 rupees.
This significant judgment was delivered today in a petition filed by M/S KP paper seeking direction against the respondents to grant it permanent registration and all those benefits as may available to Industrial units under the industrial policy of the state of J&K. The petitioner firm has invested about Rs.31 crores in setting-up the unit and has been paying an amount of Rs 20 lakhs per month as interest. The unit stands registered with the sales tax and other authorities including the state Pollution Control Board. The respondents according to the petitioner had however refused permanent registration to it thereby stalling the whole process of commissioning the unit.
In a similar case, the Court also burdened the government with a cost of Rs. 10,000 with explicit directions to register the unit permanently within a period of one month
In the approved for reporting judgment Justice Singh, after hearing Adv Rohit Kapoor appearing for the petitioner and then AG AH Naik with AAG AH Qazi appearing for the state and others, observed that the submissions made by the Advocate General are thus rejected as utterly frivolous as the Advocate General had not referred to any other law enforce in the state which prohibited lease of immovable property in favour of non-state subjects and rightly so because even the J&K Alienation of Land Act, 1995 does not provide any prohibition for lease of land as defined in the land Act in favour of non-state subjects. Non-state subject applies only permanent alienation of land and not the transfer of right to enjoy the land by way of lease. Court therefore, inclined to hold that the laws enforced in the state of J&K do not prohibit lease of immovable property in favour of non-permanent residents of the state.
Justice Singh further observed that in a welfare state like J&K and its functionaries whose duty is to serve people and act bonafide cannot afford to permit contest of litigation on vexatious and frivolous pleas. It is because of such type of defense of respondents that the petitioner had to suffer a business for its no fault. The respondents are, therefore, liable to be burdened with exemplary costs of rupees 30,000 for refusing registration to petitioner's unit and contesting their case on misconceived and vexatious grounds whereas in other similar cases they had granted permanent registration to the units, owned by non-state subjects, had obtained lease hold rights in land from private owners.
With these observations, the Court allowed the petition with direction to the respondents to considered petitioner's case for its permanent registration and pass appropriate orders in accordance with law within a period of one month. They are further directed to provide the petitioner's unit all those benefits which may be available to it under the industrial policy of the state and laws in force. (JNF) |
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