Allahabad High Court
Prem Singh vs State Of U.P. And 2 Others on 29 March, 2023
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD ?Court No. - 52 Case :- WRIT - C No. - 10975 of 2016 Petitioner :- Prem Singh Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 2 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Anurag Pathak Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C. Hon'ble Kshitij Shailendra,J.
Heard Shri Anurag Pathak, learned counsel for the petitioner and learned Standing Counsel representing the State-respondents.
The prayer in this writ petition is to quash the impugned order dated 13.04.2015 passed by the respondent no.2-District Magistrate/Collector-Saharanpur and order dated 10.12.2015 passed by the respondent no.3-Commissioner, Saharanpur, Division-Saharanpur.
The grievance of the petitioner is that the fire-arm license of the petitioner was cancelled by the District Magistrate Saharanpur vide impugned order dated 13.04.2015 on the ground that there was a criminal case registered against the petitioner being Case Crime No.72 of 2014, under Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 427 I.P.C. The contention of the petitioner before the District Magistrate was that the aforesaid case has wrongly been registered against him and there was no allegation of use of the particular fire-arm in the said incident.
The appeal filed by the petitioner against the cancellation of fire-arm license was also dismissed by the Commissioner, Saharanpur, Division-Saharanpur vide order dated 10.12.2015.
Pleadings have been exchanged between the parties.
A copy of the order dated 10.12.2021 issued by the State Government has been annexed as 'Annexure no.1' to the rejoinder affidavit. A perusal of the said order shows that the petitioner was convicted for life imprisonment vide order dated 15.04.2017 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Court No.4, Saharanpur in Sessions Trial No.69 of 2015 under Sections 302/34 and 427 I.P.C. Further perusal of the same reveals that, as on 20.04.2021, taking into consideration the old age of the petitioner i.e. 71 years and good conduct during the period of his detention, the Governor of the State of U.P. in exercise of powers under Article 161 of the Constitution of India, showed mercy on the petitioner for his premature release i.e. before serving the sentence awarded under the punishment order and, consequently, the petitioner was released from jail on the ground that by that date, he had undergone detention for a period of 7 years, 1 month and 4 days (without remission) and 8 years, 1 month and 16 days (with remission).
Learned Standing Counsel submits that merely because the Governor showed mercy upon the petitioner under the order dated 10.12.2021, the same may not be a ground for quashing of the impugned orders as the petitioner was convicted under Section 302 I.P.C.
Having heard learned counsel for the parties, this Court finds that the conviction of the petitioner as well as his release from jail are events subsequent to the passing of the orders impugned and more than seven years having been passed from the date of passing of the order of the trial court, this writ petition is disposed off in the following terms:-
(1) The orders impugned dated 13.04.2015 passed by the respondent no.2-District Magistrate/Collector-Saharanpur and order dated 10.12.2015 passed by the respondent no.3-Commissioner, Saharanpur, Division-Saharanpur are hereby quashed for the reason that the ground, on which, the orders impugned were passed do not exist today and, in case, the conduct of the petitioner over the period of last seven years has remained unquestionable for the purposes of consideration of his application for grant of fire-arm license, if, the petitioner files a fresh application before the licensing authority concerned, the same shall be placed before the Committee constituted for the said purpose which shall examine the merits of the petitioner's application after obtaining the requisite reports from all the police authorities.
(2). In case, there is no legal or factual impediment in restoration of fire-arm license to the petitioner after examining all the aspects of the matter, appropriate orders shall be passed.
(3). The entire exercise shall be completed within a period of three months from today.
Order Date :- 29.3.2023 Jyotsana