Mere Registration Of FIR Not Ground To Cancel PDS Licence: Patna High Court
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The Patna High Court has held that mere registration of an FIR against a Public Distribution System (PDS) dealer cannot, by itself, constitute a valid ground for cancellation of the dealer's licence.
A Single Judge Bench of Justice Smt. G. Anupama Chakravarthy was hearing a writ petition challenging the cancellation of the petitioner's PDS licence by the Sub-Divisional Officer, Hajipur, which was subsequently affirmed by the Collector, Vaishali and the Divisional Commissioner, Muzaffarpur.
At the outset, the parties submitted that the issue was squarely covered by the High Court's judgment dated 17.07.2026 in Vijendra Singh @ Vijagendra Singh v. State of Bihar, where an identical issue had been considered.
In Vijendra Singh, the Court had held that mere institution of a First Information Report would not constitute a valid ground for cancellation of a PDS licence. The Court had also relied upon its earlier decision in Umesh Ram v. State of Bihar, reported in AIR 2014 Patna 113.
Following the said decision, the High Court allowed the present writ petition and set aside the orders passed by the Sub-Divisional Officer on 26.11.2020, the Collector on 12.03.2022 and the Divisional Commissioner on 25.04.2023.
The Court directed that the supplies to the petitioner be restored without delay.
However, the Court clarified that the protection from cancellation was not absolute. It held that if the petitioner is subsequently convicted in the criminal case instituted against him, the authorities would thereafter be free to take necessary action in accordance with law.
Case: Sakindra Roy v. State of Bihar.
Case No.: Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No. 10841 of 2023
Appearance: For the Petitioner – Mr. Dhananjaya Nath Tiwari, Advocate. For the Respondents – Mr. Arvind Ujjwal.