Authority: High Court at Calcutta, Civil Appellate Jurisdiction (Appellate Side)

Order Date: 07 July 2026

Case Overview

  • Parties: Appellants – Suyash Agarwal & Ors.; Respondents – State of West Bengal & Ors., including the Excise Department.
  • Nature of proceedings: Writ petition (F.M.A. 388 of 2023) challenging the grant and renewal of an excise licence to a restaurant‑cum‑bar named “Malt”.
  • Key background: The appellants alleged that the licence was granted without proper public grievance consideration and that the premises were illegally constructed.
  • Relevant dates and actions:
  • 27 Nov 2019 – Email from 11 residents raising an objection (later held not to be a public grievance).
  • 6 Mar 2020 – Temporary excise licence granted to “Malt” without any prior complaint or representation before the Collector.
  • 27 Mar 2021 – Complaint filed after the temporary licence had already been granted.
  • 2022 – Regular licence granted, valid until 2023.
  • 22 Jun 2022 – Communication from Superintendent of Excise, North 24 Parganas, stating inability to act due to other pending writ petitions.
  • Court’s reasoning:
  • The appellants represented only a minuscule percentage of the housing complex residents and therefore could not maintain the writ in a representative capacity.
  • Rule 9 of the West Bengal Excise (Selection of New Sites and Grant of License for Retail Sale of Liquor and Certain Other Intoxicants) Rules requires the Collector to consider a public grievance; the November 2019 email was not a petition recording such grievance.
  • No evidence showed the appellants approached the Collector before the temporary licence was issued, rendering Rule 9(1) C inapplicable.
  • The materials on record did not establish any factual or statutory basis to restrain the grant or renewal of the licence.

Final Outcome

  • The writ petition was dismissed in its entirety.
  • The court found no infirmity in the impugned order and directed that any future challenges to the grant, renewal, or alleged unauthorized construction must be raised in a fresh writ petition before the appropriate court.
  • An urgent certified copy of the order may be obtained by the parties upon usual undertakings.

Topics: Excise Licensing, Judicial Review