The Malegaon District Court building. (Pic: The Voice of Malegaon)
In what could be termed as a major setback for a gram panchayat and a big relief for a chicken shop owner, a District Court here on Monday upheld a lower court order allowing the meat seller to continue his business while granting an injunction against the village panchayat’s notice of shutting shop issued to the vendor.
The court of Hon’ble District Judge S U Baghele made strong observations while rejecting the defendant Gram Panchayat Chandanpuri’s appeal against the lower court order pronounced in favour of the plaintiff meat seller Gulab Shaikh Ali (63) on March 06, 2024. Earlier, Ali had approached the court seeking injunction under Order 39 Rule 1 and 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Miscellaneous Civil Appeal No 17/2024 Judgement
The district court, while underlining the fact that stopping the vendor from doing trade of his choice was infringement of his fundamental right, observed, “Indisputedly, Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution guarantees a fundamental right to carry on any trade or business. Restricting the plaintiff from carrying on business of selling mutton will infringe his fundamental right to carry on his business.”
The court also observed that Section 126 of the Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act, 1959, on whose authority the defendant gram panchayat fully relied upon, does not give a free hand to the rural body to auction the fundamental right of doing trade or business. It only enables it to collect and make the recovery of fees or taxes levied by the gram panchayat on weekly bazaars or markets.
“It prima facie appears that it was an illegality on the part of the defendants in auctioning the right itself, to conduct the particular business,” the court observed. The court termed the auction of right to sell meat by the gram panchayat illegal. The court also observed that the plaintiff himself had sought permission from the gram panchayat for running his business which was turned down without any legal reason. And that the gram panchayat should have considered the application solely on merits.
Regular Civil Suit 55/2024 Gulab Shaikh Ali vs Gram Panchayat Chandanpuri
Initially, the court of Hon’ble 2nd Joint Civil Judge Junior Division Shri U B Shriram heard the matter after Ali, the meat seller, approached it seeking a relief. He sought an injunction under Order 39 Rule 1 and 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure. After hearing in details both the sides and taking on record the factual matrix, the court accepted Ali’s petition and asked the defendant gram panchayat to not put any illegal hurdles in the way of his business till the time the matter was fully disposed off by the court.
What Gram Panchayat Said
The Gram Panchayat Chandanpuri in its defence told the court that the Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act,1959 empowers a rural body to auction rights of certain trades and businesses for weekly bazaars and markets to the highest bidders for one year. Ali too was part of this auction process in the year 2018 and was allotted such a right for Rs 7,70,000 for one year after he took part in the bidding.
However, he could not pay back the entire amount to the gram panchayat and was a cause of a default to the tune of Rs 4,45,000 to the village body. And this was the reason why he was not made part of the auction process for the January 01 to December 31st, 2024 period. The gram panchayat also told the court that since the right of selling meat was already auctioned to one Sagar Ahire for January – December 2024 period, the same could not be granted to Ali again. And hence, it prayed before the court the plaintiff’s application be rejected.
What Ali Told The Court
Gulab Shaikh Ali (63) contended before the court that in December 2023 he sought permission from the gram panchayat to issue him an NOC for continuing his business. He said he wanted to do the business in a shop of his personal ownership. Instead of issuing the said NOC, the village body slapped him with a notice asking him to stop his business. The village body had cited the right to sell meat had already been given to Sagar Ahire in the annual auction process. And that he was ready to pay the annual Rs 2,000 commercial tax to the gram panchayat. Ali also told the court that he already has a shop registration certificate granted under the Maharashtra shop registration rules. He also said to put him under pressure the gram panchayat staff took away with them some cash and tools and items necessary for running a meat shop.
