Procedural Fairness Triumph: Notice Sent to Wrong Address Invalidates Order, Ensures Fair Hearing and Opportunity to Respond

HC found a violation of natural justice when respondents issued a show cause notice to petitioner's old address, preventing proper hearing. The court quashed the original order and directed respondents to issue a new notice to the updated address, provide a personal hearing, and pass a fresh order within twelve weeks, preserving all original contentions.

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Issues Involved:
The issues involved in the judgment are the violation of principles of natural justice and fair play in passing the Order-in-Original (O-I-O) dated 30.11.2022 without granting the petitioner an opportunity of hearing due to the show cause notice being issued at the old address instead of the new address provided by the petitioner.

Issue 1: Violation of Principles of Natural Justice

Comprehensive Details:
The petitioner filed a petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking the quashing of the impugned Order-in-Original dated 30.11.2022, which was passed in complete violation of principles of natural justice and fair play. The petitioner also requested the court to issue a Writ of Certiorari calling for the record and proceedings in the Show Cause Notice dated 22.12.2020 and the consequent Order-in-Original dated 30.11.2022. The petitioner contended that both the show cause notice and the O-I-O were returned unserved as they were sent to the old address, despite the petitioner having informed the respondents about the new address. The respondents justified issuing the notice at the old address, claiming that the petitioner should have informed them about the new address. However, the court held that the impugned O-I-O was passed without granting the petitioner an opportunity of hearing, as the show cause notice was sent to the old address, contrary to the new address provided by the petitioner in the registration certificate.

Decision:
The High Court quashed and set aside the Order-in-Original dated 30.11.2022. The court directed the respondents to issue a show cause notice at the new address provided by the petitioner and to hear the petitioner, granting a personal hearing. The respondents were instructed to pass an order within twelve weeks from the date of the personal hearing. All contentions of the parties were kept open, and the petition was disposed of with no order as to costs.

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