PANAJI
The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Tuesday restrained the Village Panchayat of Assagao from sealing the premises of a restaurant, holding that its owner had been left without an effective legal remedy as appeals against the panchayat’s actions could not be heard due to the absence of a functioning appellate authority.
The Division Bench of Justice Valmiki Menezes and Justice Hiten Venegavkar directed the panchayat not to proceed with the sealing of Gun Powder Bar & Restaurant situated in Assagao till the next hearing of the case. The court further ordered that if the premises had already been sealed, the panchayat must immediately remove the seals and reopen the establishment.
At the same time, the Bench made it clear that the restaurant cannot conduct business without a valid trade licence.
The petition was filed by restaurant owner Satish Warier, challenging the refusal to grant or renew a trade licence for the establishment. An appeal against the licence decision is pending before the Director of Panchayats and is scheduled for hearing on July 21. However, the court noted that the presiding officer of the appellate authority was not functioning, leaving the appeal unresolved.
The panchayat had meanwhile issued a notice on June 3 seeking to seal the restaurant on the ground that it was operating without a valid, renewed trade licence. Warier also challenged the sealing order before the appellate authority on June 12, but the appeal could neither be registered nor listed because no officer was available to hear the matter.
In its order, the High Court observed that the petitioner was effectively left remediless as no authority was available to consider his plea for interim protection against the sealing action. The Bench noted that irreparable loss could be caused to the petitioner if the premises were sealed before the appeal could be heard.
The court also recorded that the village panchayat had been informed of the hearing but remained absent despite receiving notice.
The restaurant, however, cannot conduct business without a valid trade licence. “The Petitioner would not run the restaurant or carry out any activities therein until he obtains a valid trade licence,” the court recorded after accepting an undertaking from the petitioner’s counsel. The matter has been posted for the next hearing on July 15.
