and Appeal.
2222 2252/77 121 to 125/79, 405 441/74, 46 47/75.
Appeal by Special Leave from the Judgment and Order dated 14 2 1974 of the Patna High Court in Criminal Writ Jurisdiction No.
121 125/79, 2222 2252/77 46 47/75.
3 in WP Nos.
S. Nariman, Anil B. Devan, J. B. Dadachanji, K. J. John, J.S. Sinha and Tarini Prasad for the Petitioners in WPs.
Miss A. Subhashini for Respondent No.
S. Chitale, K. K. Sinha and S. K. Sinha for the Petitioners in W.P. Nos.
The provisions of this Ordinance were companytinued under successive Ordinances and ultimately replaced by the aforesaid Act of 1973.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by SARKARIA, J. The companymon question that has been seriously pressed into argument in this batch of writ petitions and criminal appeal mentioned in the title, relates to the companystitutional validity of certain Rules framed under the State of Bihar under the Bihar Kendu Leaves Control of Trade Act, 1973 hereinafter referred to as the Act particularly clause 13, clause 4 bb of the Tender Notice and of the Statutory Agreement numberified by the Bihar Government in the Bihar Government Gazette, and the numberices of demand issued under the impugned provisions demanding royalty from the petitioners in respect of the undelivered quantity of Kendu leaves.
However, petitioner No.
300 OF 1974.
The grower is defined as a grower who holds lands on which Kendu plants grow or who is in possession of such lands under a lease or otherwise, and includes the State Government.
1 2 in all Ps.
The basic question being companymon, it will suffice to state the facts giving rise to Writ Petitions 2222 to 2252 of 1977, filed by the New Bihar Bidi Leaves Co. The petitioners in all these writ petitions are either firms or individuals carrying on trade in Kendu leaves in the State of Bihar.
ORIGINAL JURISDICTION Writ Petitions Nos.
Under Article 32 of the Constitution.
2222 2252/77.
405 441/74 and Crl.
AND CRIMINAL APPEAL No.
31 is an association of traders in Kendu leaves, of which the other petitioners are members.
All these writ petitions will be disposed of by this companymon judgment.
A. No.
Lal Narain Sinha, Attorney General of India, Ram Balak Mahto, and U. P. Singh for the Respondents Nos.
On March 10, 1972, while the State of Bihar was under the Presidents rule, the Governor of Bihar issued the Bihar Kendu Leaves Control of Trade Ordinance, 1972.
Under its scheme, a specified area of Kendu leaves is divided into units.
Under the old system in Bihar, the right to pluck and extract Kendu leaves from a forest companype carved out by the Forest Department, was auctioned by the State Government.
300/74.
Kendu leaves are grown as forest produce in several States, including the States of Bihar, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and a part of Uttar Pradesh.
Under Section 3, the State Government may, by numberification in the Official Gazette, declare any area to be a specified area for the purposes of the Act and divide every such specified area into such number of units as it may deem fit.
This Act created State monopoly in the matter of sale of Kendu leaves to the manufacturers of bidis.
