\o $ HEGH COURT OF JUDICATURE CHHATTISGARH: BILASPU_R SiNGLE BENCH : HON'BLE SHRI S.R.NAYAK, C.J. WRIT PETITiON N€3.4340OF 2004 PETITiONER versus RESPONDENTS Jjtendra Singh Bagga, S/o.,8ardar Surjit Singh Bagga, Age^ about 43 years, Occupation - Business, R/o. 6-A, 25- Bungiow, Vyapar Vihar Road, Bilaspur (Chhattjsgarh) Central Warehousing Corporation (A Government of india Undertaking) through Regionai Manager, Centrai Warehpusjng Corporation Regional Office, New Market, T.T. Nagar, Bhopal (MP) | Ware-house Manager, Centra! VVarehousing Corporation, Tirfra, Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh) Present : Shri Manindra Shrivastava, iearned Sr. Advocate with Shri Amrito Das, learned counsel for the petitioner. Shri Praveen Das, Eearned counsei forthe respondents; ORALORDER (Passed on 5tn SVJay, 2008) This writ petition is directed against the order of the Centra! Warehouslng Corporation dated 02.12.2004 biack-Iisting ths petitionerfora period of 5 years from participating in tender enquiries of CWC and suspending/banning all trade reiations with him. tt was also directed that no iease be issued/sold or business be done with any firm or company in which the petitioner is a partner or a Director. The main contention of Shri IVIanindra Shrivastava, learned ST. Counsei for the petitipner is that such an adverse order has been passed by the respondent-Corporation without giving him notice andwithout giving him an opportunity of being heard. -Sb- ^ /- (2) Opposing the writ petition, the respondents have fiied return. !n the return, Et is stated that the petitioner was given H & T ((Hand!ing & Transport) contract in whsch he was required to handie and transport the stocks of rsce stored jn the godown of the respondent-Corporation to various destinations. tt is aileged that on 25.07.2002, 479 bags of broken rice was detected in the consignment transported by the petitioner. FIR was iodged and a crimina! case was registered against the concerned persons snciuding the petitioner. It is stated that after the Investigatlon, jurisdictional Police have filed the charge-sheet against the petitioner and other persons Involved in the commisslon of cnme, in the Court of J.M.F.C-, Balodabazar u/S 420/34, 120 (B) of IPC read with Section 3& 7 of Essentlal Commoditles Act. Apart from the above c!aim, it was atso contended that before the impugned order was passed blacklisting th© petitsoner, the petitioner was ser^ed with a show-cause notice dated 12.08.2002 marked as Annexure-R/1. ! have perused Annexure-R/1 produced at page 67 ofthe paper-book. It reads as foEEows: "CWC/RO-BPL/BUS-H&T/BTPR-!/2002 6779 12th August, 2002. SHOW CAUSE NOTICE Whereas a regular H&T contract was awarded to Shri J.S. Bagga AT Centrat Warehouse, Bhatapara-1 for a period of t?/o years w.e.f. 24.7.2000 vide Eetter No: CWC/RO-BPL/BUS- H&T/Bhatapara/2000, dt. 29.8.2000 and the same was extended as per the agreement for a period of 6 months beyond 23.7.2002. And whereas he was required to dispatoh a rice rake from Centrai Warehouse, Bhatapara-i to Jabaipur and when the said rake of rice was loaded on 24.7.2002/25.7.2002 from BHATAPARA to JABALPUR on behalf of Food Corporation of india and whlEe joading was going on, his truck Driver of Tmck No: CG-10-ZB-0355 has changed the bags by coiiiding with some Millers and instead of Raw Rice Common, compiete broken rice was loaded in the wagon and when the same was noticed, it was unloaded as reported and was brought back to the Warehouse and agaln 240 bags of Raw Rice Common was sent by the Warehouse Manager to complete the wagon. Under these circumstances, he is iiabie to make good 'p^ -3- ^ji ^:"i the losses suffered by the Corporation, under ctause No. XII (b)(d) read with Clause Nos. XXI (4)(27)(30) of the H&T Tender. Moreover.whatever default will be found at the destination, the same wii! be recovered from him. He is aiso hereby asked to explain as to why his regular Handling & Transport contract CWC, Bhatapara-1, should not be terminated under Clause No: X (b) of the H&T tender, due to breach of trust. (S.C.S. Rao) REGIONAL MANAGER To, ShriJ.S. Bagga, H&T Contractor, Opp. Priyadarshani Nagar, Ring Road, BILASPUR. CC: The Commercial Manager (IB &D), CWC, CO, New Delhi." (3) in paras 1 and 2 allegations are made againstthe petitioner in the matter of transporting raw rice. Having made those aliegations, in the iast paragraph the petitioner was called upon to explain as to why the * . : ' 1 regular handling and transporting contract awarded to! the petitioner should not be terminated under Clause No. X(b) ofthe H & Titender due to breach of trust aileged to have committed by him. Thus, it is quite dear that Annexure-R/1 notice is a notice given to the petit'ioner with regard to a particular contract, cailing upon the petitioner to show-cause as to why that contract should not be terminated on the ground of breach of terms of contract. If a person like the petitioner has to be blacklisted which has a serious civii consequence, the petitioner should have been givena notice cailing upon him to show-cause against the proposed black!isting. It is not the case of the respondeht that apart from Annexure-R/1 notice, any other notice was given to the petitioner calling upon him to explain his conduct with regard to the proposal of the Corporation for blacklisting .him for a period of five years from participating in tender enquiries of C.W.C. and -^- suspending/banning all trade retations with him. Therefore, it cannot be said that before passing the impugned order of blacklisting, show-cause notice proposing to blacklist the petitioner was issued. The petitioner was not glven a fair opportunity of being heard as required in law and mandatect by ArticEe 14 read with Article 19 (1)(g) of the Constitution of India. in that view of the matter, 1 ailow the writ petition and quash the impugned order Annexure-R/2 dated 02nd December, 2002. However, this order shall not come in the way of the respondent-Corporation taking appropriate steps, in accordance with Eaw to blackiist the petitioner, if they are so advised and they have good reasons to do so. No costs. i Sd/- Chief Justice ^ ^