2022 (2) TMI 1420

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.... Respondents Nos. 1 and 2 from taking any steps to implement the Rule. Respondent No. 1 is the State of Maharashtra and the Respondent No. 2 is the Mumbai Municipal Corporation. 2. It seems now to have become a habit in this Court to seek the high prerogative remedy of a mandamus without averring that the petitioner has made a demand for justice but this has been denied; or even making a demand at all, let alone explaining how the case fits in the few limited and well-known exceptions to the general rule. So far, we have allowed petitioners to make the necessary amendments. But this dereliction persists, as if writ law of several centuries' vintage is utterly inconsequential. So that there is absolutely no mistaking us on this score, we list a few of the very many decisions that make it plain that a demand for justice and its refusal are a sine-qua-non for the grant of a mandamus: Commissioner of Income Tax v. Scindia Steam Navigation Co. Ltd.[(1962) 1 SCR 788]; Kamini Kumar Das Choudhary v. State of West Bengal & Ors (1972) 2 SCC 420; Saraswati Industrial Syndicate Ltd. & Ors. v. Union of India (1974) 2 SCC 630; State of Haryana v. Subhash Chander Marwaha & Ors. (1974) 3 SC....

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....damus is issued in favour of a person who establishes a legal right in himself. A writ of mandamus is issued against a person who has a legal duty to perform but has failed and/or neglected to do so. Such a legal duty emanates from either in discharge of a public duty or by operation of law. The writ of mandamus is of a most extensive remedial nature. The object of mandamus is to prevent disorder from a failure of justice and is required to be granted in all cases where law has established no specific remedy and whether justice despite demanded has not been granted." 38. A salutary principle or a well-recognised rule that needs to be kept in mind before issuing a writ of mandamus was stated in Saraswati Industrial Syndicate Ltd. v. Union of India [ (1974) 2 SCC 630] in the following words: (SCC pp. 641-42, paras 24-25) "24.... The powers of the High Court under Article 226 are not strictly confined to the limits to which proceedings for prerogative writs are subject in English practice. Nevertheless, the well-recognised rule that no writ or order in the nature of a mandamus would issue when there is no failure to perform a mandatory duty applies in this country as....

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....er alia with fine of up to Rs. 1,00,000. For continuing contraventions, there is a provision for a fine of Rs. 2,000/- per day. 8. The first submission by Mr. Khandeparkar on behalf of the Petitioners is that there is no rational nexus between the Rule and the object of either the Act or the Rules. It is submitted that the Rules are intended to carry forward or to further the statutory intent containing in the parent Act. This Rule cannot be traced, he claims, to any provision of the Act. Individuals cannot be put under the disabilities not contemplated by the Act. 9. The second submission is that while any State Government may adopt any one or more of the languages listed in the Article 335 of the Constitution as the language of the State, this is only for official purposes. That State's choice of language cannot be foisted on individual or citizens. The Maharashtra Official Languages Act, 1964 adopted Marathi as the official language for all purposes under Section 5. In this context our attention is drawn toward decision of the Hon'ble Karnataka High Court in Vodafone Essar South Ltd. vs. The State of Karnataka[Writ Petition No. 1901 of 2009] by a learned Single Jud....

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....ecent information and technology have revolutionized the mode of trading whereby it is possible to sell goods and services online without any physical, and geographical limitations and time limitations being available for twenty-four hours. Therefore, the provisions of the said Act of keeping a shop or establishment closed for a business on one day of the week and to restrict the opening and closing hours of establishments have become obsolete. It has become necessary to provide even platform for offline business to compete with online business and to permit to operate shops and establishments for twenty-four hours and all days in a week. It will help employment generation at large and to increase Gross Domestic Product. 3. In line with the "ease of doing business" policy of the Government, it is necessary that the marginal and small establishments engaging less than ten employees need to be liberalized from registration under the Act and to provide all the services under the Act online based on self-declaration and self-certified documents. It is also necessary that the employees in the shops and establishments should have uniform working conditions. All the welfare measu....

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....ot be apparent to the Petitioners, it is quite self evident to us. As to the decision of learned Single Judge in regard to corresponding Rule introduced in Karnataka by an amendment, with respect we find ourselves unable to agree with the reasoning. We also note that the provision there was to show the name board in Kannada language more predominantly by providing more space than for any other language. There was also fact that this was sought to be introduced merely two days' notice. The relevant Rule said that the name board of every establishment shall be in Kannada and wherever other languages are also used, the versions in such other languages shall be below the Kannada version. The name board in Kannada version shall be written more predominantly by providing more space than for other languages. 16. We cannot divorce the operation of that Rule from the sheer geographical ambit to which is applies, i.e. the State of Maharashtra. Marathi is not merely the official language of the State Government; it is undeniably the common language and the mother tongue of the State. It has its own extremely rich and diverse cultural tradition extending to every field of endeavour from....

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....o same is been done by the Respondent by amending the rule No. 35 as pursuant to the said amendment the said rule shall be applicable even to the small shops that employ 10 or less workers. It seems that Respondents forgets that in a city of Mumbai Marathi population are downgrading their mother tongue to such a level that legal methods are used to implement its use where its applicability has always been under the scanner. 13. The Petitioners state that the it is pertinent to note that thousands of Marathi medium schools are closed because of lack of effort to offer the new generation to study Marathi. In Mumbai alone, the number of students in the Marathi medium schools has come down to one third of its strength 10 years ago. According to a report, there were 35, 181 students in the academic year 2019-20, down from 1,02, 214 in 2010-11. Most of Marathi schools are turning into 'English mediums'. In most of schools of Mumbai which are now converted IB board Marathi is an optional subject. 14. The Petitioners state that they welcome decision of Respondents but the question is if the Marathi (medium) schools don't survive, how will resident who can read....