1990 (3) TMI 323

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.... Markets Act, 1961 (for brevity the Act) levying market-fee on sale and purchase of agricultural produce in market-yard or sub-market yard was challenged by dealers for lack of legislative competence, violation of Articles 14, 19, 30 1 and 304 of Constitution, absence of any quid pro quo in the fee paid and service rendered, illegal and arbitrary inclusion of manufactured articles such as Khandsari, Shakkar, Gur and Sugar as agricultural produce in the sched- ule etc. Acts of other States, for instance, Punjab and Haryana and U.P. were also assailed for similar infirmities. Whether these petitions, which appear to be identical, are reproduction of any of those petitions, which were pending in this Court from before is not relevant but va....

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....ter was immaterial as Section 40 of the Act empowered State Government to amend or include any item in the Schedule of agricultural produce. Existence of such delegated power is usual feature of the statutes. No illegality or infirmity could be pointed out in it. Any challenge, there- fore, rounded on excessive delegation of legislative power was misconceived. Inclusion of sugar in the Schedule was urged to be arbitrary as it was not produced out of soil the basic ingredient of agricultural produce. Fallacy of the submission is apparent as it was in complete disregard of definition of the word "agricultural produce" in the Act which includes all produce whether agricultural, horticultural, animal husbandry or otherwise as specified in th....

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.... horticulture and any article of food or drink wholly or partly manufactured or derived from any such product and fleeces (including all kinds of wool) and the skins of animals'. In the same volume products covered by the provisions of EEC Treaty as to agriculture (classified according to the Brussels Nomenclature of 1965) are mentioned in paragraph 1845. Sugar is one of them. Another legalistic challenge regarding inhibition of State to legislate on sugar or of repeated argument of occupied field was more attractive than of any substance. Reliance on Article 246 of the Constitution was academic only. As far back as 1956 Constitution Bench of this Court in Choudhary Tika Ram and others v. State of U.P., [1956] SCR 393 examined the matter....