Satish Chandra, J. - (1.) On March 15, 1977, the State Government issued a notification declaring its intention to regulate the sale and purchase of agricultural produce mentioned in Sch. 'B in the Market Areas mentioned in Sch. A, in partial modification of earlier notifications mentioned in Column 4 of Sch. 'A. It invited objections in respect of the proposed declaration. Having considered the objections and suggestions received by it, the State Government, on April 11, 1978, issued a notification under Section 8 (1) (a) of the U. P. Krishi Utpadan Mandi Adhiniyam, 1964, declaring that with effect from May 1, 1978, agricultural produce mentioned in Schedule B shall be included in the list of specified agricultural produce of Market Areas mentioned in Sch. A. Sch. A covered 250 Market Areas in various districts of this State. Sch. B referred to nearly 100 different commodities.
(2.) The petitioners in the large group of writ petitions have challenged the validity of the aforesaid notification. 2-A. The validity of the notification has been questioned on the following grounds: (1) The notification is ultra vires Sections 5, 6 and 8 of the Act. In the alternative, Sections 5, 6 and 8 of the Act are violative of Arts. 14 and 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution. (2) The notification violates the guarantee under Art. 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution. (3) The notification violates Art, 301 of the Constitution. (4) The notification was invalid, as there was no application of mind to the relevant and material factors. (5) The licence fee and the market fee leviable under the Act is ultra vires; it is, in substance, a tax. (6) Commodities like wood, bamboo, hides and skins, dairy products, ghee, zeera, tobacco, tendu leaves, Rab, Bhusa, rice, etc. are not covered by the Act, and 60 the notification in relation thereto is ultra vires.
(3.) Most of these points have been, during the course of the years, urged before this Court in earlier rounds of writ petitions and have been rejected.;