High Court sets aside refusal of liquor license renewal, directs reevaluation within 2 months under Bihar Excise Act.

The High Court allowed the writ application, setting aside the order rejecting the renewal of the liquor license and directing the Collector to reconsider the renewal request within two months. The Court found some grounds for refusal to be illegal, remitted the matter back to the Collector for fresh consideration, and emphasized that renewal cannot be refused arbitrarily under the Bihar Excise Act. An intervention application was allowed, and the Court highlighted that the validity of reasons for declining renewal must be based on the reasons mentioned in the order itself.

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Issues:
1. Renewal of liquor license rejected by Collector.
2. Grounds for refusal of license renewal.
3. Intervention application by Balmukund Singh.
4. Right to renewal of license under Bihar Excise Act.
5. Validity of reasons for declining license renewal.
6. Remittal of matter back to Collector for reconsideration.

Issue 1 - Renewal of liquor license rejected by Collector:
The petitioner filed a writ application under Article 226 to quash the order rejecting the renewal of their liquor license. The Collector had declined to renew the license, citing various grounds, including the petitioner being an accused in a criminal case and alleged undue pressure on the licensing authority. The petitioner challenged this order before the High Court.

Issue 2 - Grounds for refusal of license renewal:
The High Court found the first two grounds for refusal of license renewal to be illegal. However, the third ground, concerning the validity of the earlier license granted to the petitioner, was considered by the Court. The Collector had declined renewal, stating that the license granted in 2002-2003 was illegal and not in accordance with the law. The Court remitted the matter back to the Collector for fresh consideration.

Issue 3 - Intervention application by Balmukund Singh:
Balmukund Singh filed an application for intervention, which was allowed by the Court. The Court considered his interest in the matter while setting aside the Collector's earlier order refusing license renewal.

Issue 4 - Right to renewal of license under Bihar Excise Act:
The State argued that the licensee has no absolute right to renewal of the license as per Section 45 of the Bihar Excise Act, which bars any claim to renewal or compensation upon the determination of the license. The Court accepted this argument but emphasized that renewal cannot be refused arbitrarily.

Issue 5 - Validity of reasons for declining license renewal:
The Court referred to a Supreme Court decision emphasizing that the validity of an order must be judged based on the reasons mentioned in the order itself and not supplemented by additional grounds later. The Collector's order did not mention this ground for refusal, so it was not considered in judging the validity of the order.

Issue 6 - Remittal of matter back to Collector for reconsideration:
The Court set aside the Collector's order refusing license renewal, remitting the matter back to him for reconsideration. The Court directed the Collector to decide on the renewal within two months from the date of the order.

In conclusion, the High Court allowed the writ application, setting aside the order rejecting license renewal and directing the Collector to reconsider the renewal request within a specified timeframe.

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