- (1.) Special leave granted in Special Leave Petitions (Civil) Nos. 4669-4771 of 1978.
(2.) A group of writ petitions came to be filed in the High court of Judicature at Allahabad questioning the constitutional validity of Section 37-A of the U. P. Excise Act, 1910 (hereinafter called 'the Act') and the notifications issued thereunder on 30/03/1978 and 31/03/1978. By the said notifications, a total prohibition on 'tari' (toddy) was introduced in the State and partial prohibition was introduced in respect of the country liquor and foreign liquor. The constitutional validity of Section 37-A was unsuccessfully challenged in an earlier Writ Petition No. 2972 of 1972 (Garihdas v. State). Presumably for that reason these writ petitions were heard and disposed of by a full bench of the High court and were allowed by the judgment dated 25/05/1978. The full bench held the said provision to be ultra vires Article 14 of the Constitution and hence a nullity. Consequently, it held that the notifications issued under the said provision were unsustainable. Both the section and the notifications were, therefore, quashed. Feeling aggrieved by the said order, the State of U. P. sought a certificate under Article 133 of the Constitution of India which was granted. The appeal was filed on 29/05/1978 along with an application for stay. Interim stay against the implementation of the impugned judgment was granted. The other special leave petitions followed.
(3.) Section 20 (1 of the Act states that no person, not being licensed to manufacture, cultivate, collect or sell any intoxicant, shall have in his possession any quantity of any intoxicant in excess of such quantity as the State government has, under Section 6 declared to be the limit of sale by retail except under a permit granted by the Collector in that behalf. Subsection (2 next provided that Ss. (1 shall not extend to any foreign liquor in the possession of any common carrier or warehouseman as such or which has been purchased by any person for his hona fide privateconsumption and not for sale. Section 37-A was then introduced by the U. P. Excise (Amendment) Act, 1972 with effect from 22/1/1972 and read as under: "37-A.prohibition of import, export, transport or possession of intoxicants.- (1 The State government may by notification (a) prohibit the import or export of any intoxicant into or from Uttar Pradesh or any part thereof; or (b) prohibit the transport of any intoxicant. (2 Without prejudice to the provisions of Section 20, the State government may, by notification, prohibit the possession by any person or class of persons or subject to such exceptions, if any, as may be specified in the notification, by all persons in Uttar Pradesh or in any specified area or areas thereof, of any intoxicant either absolutely or subject to such conditions as may be specified in the notification. " The rest of the provisions are not necessary to be stated. This Amending Act received the assent of the President on 19-1-1972 and was published in the U. P. Gazette Extraordinary dated 22/1/1972. Ss. (3 made it clear that the power of the State government under Ss. (1 to prohibit the import, export or transport of any intoxicant and its power under Ss. (2 to prohibit the possession of any intoxicant may be exercised in pursuance of the policy of gradual extension of prohibition in the State, and different areas may from time to time be selected in that behalf after taking into account certain factors indicated in that sub-SECTION,;