Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
H P Ispat Private Limited And Another vs West Bengal Electricity Regulatory on 20 September, 2022
56-79 20.09.2022
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MNS WPA No. 14688 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 H P Ispat Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14691 of 2022 HMB Ispat Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14704 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Debeanjana Hard Coke Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14709 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Alishan Steels Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14722 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Shreesatya Steel and Power Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14728 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Jai Venktesh Concast Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With 2 WPA No. 14763 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Jai Ambey Metals Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14764 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Shree Ramdoot Rollers Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14765 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Sumangal Ispat Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14768 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Expandable Enterprise Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14769 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Shree Waris Piya Steel Company Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14827 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 Ruhr Ispat Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With WPA No. 14832 of 2022 IA No: CAN 1 of 2022 3 Venky Hi Tech Ispat Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With W.P.A. 15130 of 2022 CAN 2 of 2022 CAN 3 of 2022 Purulia Metal Casting Pvt. Ltd. and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With W.P.A 15255 of 2022 CAN 2 of 2022 CAN 3 of 2022 Nilkanth Ferro Limited and another Vs. State Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With W.P.A. 15332 of 2022 CAN 2 of 2022 Haldia Steels Private Limited and another Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission and others With W.P.A. 15464 of 2022 H.R. Inspat Private Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
With W.P.A. 15587 of 2022 C,A.N. 1 of 2022 Surya Alloy Industries Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
With W.P.A. 15590 of 2022 With C.A.N. 1 of 2022 Metsil Exports Private Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
With 4 W.P.A. 16139 of 2022 Calster Sponge Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
With W.P.A. 16141 of 2022 Xpro India Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
With W.P.A. 16836 of 2022 Maha Gauri Strips Private Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
With W.P.A. 17116 of 2022 Srinivasa Ferroy Alloys Limited & Anr.
Vs. West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission & Ors.
Mr. Partha Sarathi Sengupta, Mr. Tanoy Chakraborty, Mr. Goutam Sharoff, Mr. Shayak Mitra, Mr. Siddharth Shroff ....for the petitioners in WPA 14688 of 2022 Mr. Surojit Nath Mitra, Mr. Tanoy Chakraborty, Mr. Goutam Shroff, Mr. Siddharth Shroff, Mr. Shayak Mitra ....for the petitioners in WPA 14691 of 2022 5 Mr. Tanoy Chakraborty, Mr. Goutam Shroff, Mr. Siddharth Shroff ....for the petitioners in WPA 14704 of 2022 WPA 14709 of 2022 WPA 14722 of 2022 WPA 14728 of 2022 WPA 14763 of 2022 WPA 14764 of 2022 WPA 14765 of 2022 WPA 14768 of 2022 WPA 14769 of 2022 WPA 14827 of 2022 WPA 14832 of 2022 WPA 15587 of 2022 WPA 15590 of 2022 WPA 16139 of 2022 WPA 16141 of 2022 Mr. Tanay Chakraborty, Mr. Shayak Mitra, Mr. Abhijit Sakar ....for the petitioners in WPA 15464 of 2022 WPA 16836 of 2022 Mr. Tanay Chakraborty, Mr. Debsoumya Basak, Mr. Viswajit Neogi ...for the petitioners in WPA 11691 of 2022 WPA 15332 of 2022 WPA 17114 of 2022 WPA 17116 of 2022 Mr. Abhrajit Mitra, Mr. S. Banerjee, Ms. Sanjan Sinha, Mr. S. K. Banerjee, Mr. Souradeep Banerjee ...for the petitioners in WPA 15130 of 2022 WPA 15255 of 2022 Mr. M. G. Ramachandran, Ms. Anushree Bardhan, Mr. Prasun Mukherjee, 6 Mr. Dipak Agarwal ....for the DVC Mr. Pratik Dhar, Mr. Victor Chatterjee, Ms. Sharmistha Ghosh, Mr. Amit Ghosh .... for the WBERC in WPA 14688 of 2022 WPA 15332 of 2022 Mr. Victor Chatterjee, Ms. Sharmistha Ghosh, Mr. Amit Ghosh ....for the WBERC in all the matters Leave is granted to the petitioners in WPA 14691 of 2022 and WPA 14688 of 2022 to file supplementary affidavits introducing the verification portion of the affidavits-in-reply filed by the petitioners in connection with the said writ petitions. Such supplementary affidavits filed today be kept on record. Affidavits-in-reply filed today be also kept on record.
Affidavits-in-opposition filed by the WBERC in WPA 16836 of 2022 in Court today be kept on record.
Affidavits-in-opposition filed by the DVC in WPA 15587 of 2022, WPA 17114 of 2022, WPA 17116 of 2022, WPA 16139 of 2022, WPA 16141 7 of 2022, WPA 16836 of 2022 and WPA 15590 of 2022, in Court today be kept on record as well.
The learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners points out that on a previous occasion, it was indicated by the court that the matters would be taken up for final hearing.
However, since the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission takes a preliminary objection on a point of maintainability of the writ petitions, to cut short the issue, the said objection is taken up first for being heard before proceeding with the final hearing of the matters.
Upon preliminary hearing of the objection as regards maintainability, it transpires that the said objection, which primarily pertains to the availability of an equally efficacious alternative remedy under Section 111 of the Electricity Act, 2003, the facts of the matters and the attending circumstances as well as the governing law are to be looked into at least incidentally for the purpose of deciding whether there is scope of interference under Article 226 of the Constitution. As such, the maintainability point cannot be decided as a preliminary issue. However, as indicated earlier, 8 all questions will be kept open for being taken at the time of final hearing of the matters.
In such view of the matter, the final hearing of the matters is being taken up now.
Heard in part.
The matters shall next be enlisted for further hearing at 2 p.m. on November 9, 2022.
The interim order granted earlier is extended till November 30, 2022 or until further order, whichever is earlier.
(Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya, J.)