The Allahabad High Court on Friday said in an order that the authority which has given permission under Section 21 of the General Clauses Act has the right to withdraw it even if there is no such provision in relevant law.
The Division Bench of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Vikram D. Chauhan passed this order while hearing a petition filed by Rahul Jaiswal. The Court noted that the premises D-37/110, Badadeo, Varanasi is the premises owned by respondents. An application was moved by them to run a hotel in their premises and such permission was granted under the Sarais Act, 1867.
Subsequently, an application was moved by private respondents for cancellation of the permission on the ground that in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the owners have suffered losses and are no longer desirous of running the hotel.
Based upon such an application dated August 10, 2021 an order came to be passed by the authority concerned on August 10, 2021 itself.
Subsequently the petitioner sought recall of this order on the ground that he had entered into an agreement with respondents for running of the hotel, and that he is still willing to run it.
It is also alleged that in respect of petitioner’s right to run the hotel, he had instituted an Original Suit, in which an injunction has been granted in his favour, and therefore, he has the right to run the hotel.
The application of petitioner, however, has been rejected by the competent authority order dated September 2, 2021.
Counsel for the petitioner submitted that under the Act of 1867 there exists no provision for cancellation of registration, and therefore the order is without jurisdiction.
The petition was strongly opposed by R.N. Singh and V.K. Chandel appearing for the respondents. It is urged that since permission to run the hotel was granted on an application moved by private respondents, therefore, the permission can always be withdrawn on their request and the order impugned merits no interference.
So far as private dispute between petitioner and the respondents in respect of the property in issue is concerned, the matter needs to be resolved by the appropriate civil court, where the matter is pending.
However, so far as the permission to run the hotel under the Act of 1867 is concerned, it is apparent that such permission was granted on an application filed by private respondents. The subsequent withdrawal of permission is on an application filed by the same private respondents, the Court observed.
“So far as right of registering authority to revoke the permission is concerned, even though no specific provision is shown to exists in the Act of 1867, yet by virtue of Section 21 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 the competent authority having granted the permission to run the Sarai can always revoke it, inasmuch as the power to grant permission include the power to revoke at the instance of petitioner, therefore, order need not be interfered with,”
-the Court said while dismissing of the petition.