Facts of the Case

This is Writ Petition No. 21760 of 2023 before the High Court for the State of Telangana at Hyderabad, filed by M/s Moroan Enterprises, a stall licensee at the Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (MGBS), Hyderabad, challenging a notice dated 15.06.2023 issued by the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) terminating its license for Stall No. 94-A without following due process. This case has no GST content at all — it concerns termination of a public-premises license for a commercial stall.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the termination of the petitioner's stall license without a fuller process was illegal, arbitrary or violative of Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution.
  2. Whether a licensing dispute of this contractual nature was amenable to writ jurisdiction under Article 226.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The termination notice was issued without following due process of law and was arbitrary, discriminatory and violative of his right to carry on business under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution.

Respondent's Arguments

  • TSRTC defended the termination as being within its contractual rights under the license terms, and opposed interference in what was essentially a contractual matter, relying on precedent that courts should be slow to interfere in commercial/contractual decisions of public corporations absent malice or arbitrariness.

Court Order / Findings

  • Relying on Supreme Court precedents including Joshi Technologies International v. Union of India, (2015) 7 SCC 728, and Rajasthan State Industrial Development and Investment Corporation v. Diamond and Gem Development Corporation Ltd., (2013) 5 SCC 470, the Court held that where a contract between a private party and a State instrumentality is essentially a matter of private law without any element of public law, the aggrieved party's ordinary remedy lies in civil law, not under Article 226.
  • The Court found that the petitioner had not made out any case warranting interference under Article 226, and dismissed the writ petition.
  • However, the Court left it open to the petitioner to make a representation for handing over the stall after digitisation work was completed for the remainder of the license period, on humanitarian grounds, given the petitioner's dependence on the stall for his livelihood and having completed less than four months out of a four-year license term.

Important Clarification

This is a public-premises licensing and contract-law ruling with no GST dimension whatsoever. The only takeaway of general interest is the reiteration of the settled principle that disputes essentially contractual in nature between a licensee and a State corporation are not ordinarily amenable to writ jurisdiction, though courts may still leave room for an administrative, humanitarian representation.

Sections Involved

  • Article 226, Constitution of India — limits of writ jurisdiction over contractual/licensing disputes
  • Article 19(1)(g), Constitution of India — right to carry on trade/business

Decision – In Favour of

In favour of the Respondents (TSRTC) — the writ petition was dismissed without costs, though the petitioner was left the option of a humanitarian administrative representation.

Case Details

Court: High Court for the State of Telangana at Hyderabad
Case No.: Writ Petition No. 21760 of 2023
Coram: Justice Surepalli Nanda
Date: 30 October 2023

Link to Download the Order

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