Fraudulently obtained advance licences cannot support Article 226 relief to regularise imports or bypass export obligations.

Advance licences obtained by fraud and misrepresentation do not justify discretionary writ relief under Article 226 when the petition seeks to avoid the consequences of breach of import and export conditions. The Court treated the fraudulent procurement of the licences as a decisive bar to relief and held that a party acting dishonestly cannot use writ jurisdiction to regularise imports or secure permission years later to discharge the export obligation. An earlier appellate observation on regularisation of imports already effected did not create a fresh entitlement to seek such permission. The request was therefore rejected.

---

---

Issues: Whether the petitioner was entitled to a writ directing the authorities to permit fulfilment of the export obligation and to regularise the imports under the advance licences, despite the concurrent findings of fraud, misrepresentation, and breach of licence conditions.

Analysis: The licences had been obtained by fraud and misrepresentation, a finding that stood against the petitioner and could not be disturbed in writ jurisdiction. The relief sought was not a genuine attempt to comply with the export conditions but an effort to avoid the consequences of breach, including duty, fine, and penalty already levied. The appellate observation regarding regularisation of imports already effected did not confer a fresh entitlement to seek permission years later to discharge the export obligation. A party whose conduct is found to be dishonest cannot invoke Article 226 to obtain discretionary relief.

Conclusion: The petitioner was not entitled to the writ relief, and the claim for permission to fulfil the export obligation was rejected.

Final Conclusion: Discretionary relief was denied because the petitioner's licences were procured and used in a manner involving fraud, misrepresentation, and deliberate violation of the import conditions.

Ratio Decidendi: Writ relief under Article 226 will be refused where the underlying licences were obtained by fraud and misrepresentation and the petition is an attempt to evade the consequences of breach of statutory or licence conditions.

---