- (1.) HEARD learned counsel for the petitioner and perused the record.
(2.) BY means of impugned order dated 20.03.2012 the Commissioner, while admitting appeal of petitioner against order dated 01.03.2012 passed by Deputy Collector Puwayan cancelling fair price shop agreement of petitioner, has declined to grant any stay order for lack of any justification. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that cancelling authority has passed a wholly illegal order without considering the case of petitioner property and, therefore, it was incumbent upon appellate authority to pass stay order in favour of petitioner particularly when he possess such power. He also submitted that application for stay was confined to the fact that either operation of cancellation order dated 01.03.2012 be stayed or that no fresh allotment of fair price shop be made to any third party during pendency of appeal. Copy of stay application has been placed on record as Annexure4 to the writ petition. Firstly, I come to the question of justification of interim order in favour of petitioner.
(3.) THE petitioner has sought stay against cancellation order dated 01.03.2012. It means that petitioner wanted that cancellation order should be stayed, as a result whereof he should be allowed to run his fair price shop. This amounts to grant of final relief. It is well settled that in the garb of interim order, the relief which amounts to final relief, cannot be granted. (See: State of U.P. and others Vs. Ram Khelawan & others JT 1995 (6) SC 305, Bank of Maharashtra Vs. Race Shipping and Transport Co. Pvt. Ltd. AIR 1995 SC 1368 and Division Bench Judgment of this Court in State of U.P. & another Vs. Smt. Dayavanti Khanna 1994 (24) ALR 140). Following catena of decisions of the Apex Court on this aspect, a Division Bench of this court in District Judge Baghpat Vs. Anurag Kumar 2005 (2) ESC 1509 has held as under: "It is settled that a final relief cannot be granted at the interim stage. We are, therefore, of the view that the interim order under appeal is unsustainable. It is settled legal proposition that no interim relief at the initial stage which amounts to final relief should be granted. The Hon'ble Apex Court has consistently and persistently held that the Court should not pass an order at the interim stage, which can be granted only at the time of disposal of the petition." ;