Facts of the Case

A note on this source document: the scanned copy available for this case is significantly degraded in parts (garbled OCR text, and pages that appear to intermix this order with an earlier, unrelated common order the Court refers to). The facts below are drawn only from the portions that are clearly legible.

The petitioner, Greeshma Wellness Spa, engaged in the business of providing beauty and wellness services (salon and spa) in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy district, held valid registration certificates for its business. According to the petitioner, police personnel visited its premises and asked whether it held a specific court order permitting it to operate, referring to an earlier common order dated 28.09.2021 passed by the Telangana High Court in W.P. No. 16281 of 2010 and a batch of connected writ petitions, which had laid down conditions for the lawful operation of massage centres — maintaining a visitor register with names, addresses and phone numbers, keeping the main door open during working hours, and permitting periodic police verification. The petitioner contended it was already complying with these directions and questioned why it needed to independently "obtain" such an order.

The State's Assistant Government Pleader submitted that the petitioner was operating without permission from municipal authorities or GST registration as required under law, and that the respondents were not otherwise interfering with the petitioner's business, provided it followed the 2021 common order.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the petitioner, already complying in substance with the 2021 common-order conditions governing massage centres, needed to obtain a fresh, separate order from the Court to continue operating.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The petitioner was already implementing the directions laid down in the 2021 common order in W.P. No. 16281 of 2010 and batch, without deviation, and objected to being repeatedly asked by police to produce a specific court order.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The petitioner was operating without having obtained permission from the municipal authorities or GST registration as required under law; subject to the petitioner following the 2021 common order, the respondents were not otherwise interfering with the business.

Court Order / Findings

  • The Court disposed of the writ petition by directing the petitioner to continue following the directions issued in the 2021 common order (W.P. No. 16281 of 2010 and batch) — maintaining visitor records, keeping the main entrance open, and permitting police verification.
  • It clarified that this did not preclude the police from taking lawful action if any deviation from those directions was observed, or if any complaint was made against the petitioner.
  • It further noted that it remained open to the petitioner to obtain the requisite municipal and GST permissions/registrations and comply with the 2021 order accordingly.

Important Clarification

GST registration is referenced here only as one of the ordinary regulatory permissions (alongside municipal licensing) that a wellness/spa business is expected to hold — the case does not decide any GST-law question. Businesses in this sector should treat the 2021 Telangana High Court guidelines on record-keeping and premises access as a baseline compliance requirement, separate from and in addition to their GST and municipal registrations.

Sections Involved

  • Constitution of India, 1950 — Article 226
  • Hyderabad City Police Act, 1348 Fasli — regulatory framework for such establishments
  • General municipal and GST registration requirements — referenced as separate compliance obligations, not adjudicated in this order

Decision – In Favour of

Disposed of on terms — the petitioner was directed to continue complying with the 2021 common order, with liberty to the police to act on any deviation, and was reminded to obtain municipal and GST permissions.

Case Details

  • Court: High Court for the State of Telangana at Hyderabad
  • Case No.: Writ Petition No. 12906 of 2023 (source scan shows the year partly garbled)
  • Coram: Justice E.V. Venugopal
  • Date of Order: As per the scanned record, on or about 23.04.2023 (date field partially degraded in the source scan)

Link to Download the Order

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