- (1.) The Petitioner has brought this Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution, as the Secretary of the Sribara Co-operative Sankha Silpi Society, praying for a writ of mandamus directing the Respondents who include the West Bengal Small Industries Corporation Ltd. (O. P. No. 1) and the Government of West Bengal (O. P. No. 2) to cancel the order dated the 5th August, 1966, made by Respondent No. 8, the Managing Director or Opposite Party No. 1 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Corporation'), which is at Ann. B to the Petition.
(2.) The Petitioner is a member, along with a number of other conch-shell artisans, of the Sribara Co-operative Sankha Silpi Society Ltd., and his case is that this Co-operative Society has a right "to get an equitable distribution of Chanks" from the Corporation. This alleged right is founded in this way: Chanks are grown only in the States of Madras and Ceylon. In order to ensure a supply of these chanks to artisans of West Bengal, the Government of West Bengal, in 1956, formulated a scheme through its Directorate of Industries, for the purchase of chanks from Madras and Ceylon and then to distribute them to the artisans through the Cooperative Societies. In June, 1961, the Scheme, with its staff, was transferred to the West Bengal Industries Corporation Ltd., which describes itself as a Government of West Bengal Undertaking. It is further stated in the Petition that though the Corporation is a company registered under the Companies Act, its shares are confined to the Government or its nominees and its Articles of Association expressly declare that "no invitation shall be issued to the public to subscribe any shares or stock or debentures stock of the Company."
(3.) The Government of Madras has recently allotted chanks worth Rs. 6.75 lakhs to the Corporation but by the impugned order, the Managing Director has allotted all these chanks to only three out of the 24 Chank Co-operative Societies of West Bengal. But by the same order (Ann. B), the Corporation has intimated the Society to which the Petitioner belongs that another consignment of chanks is being expected from Tuticorin for the supply from which stock the Petitioner's Society may apply : "We have already requested the Government of Madras to make available to us further quantities of Tutieorin chanks valued approximately at Rs. 7.5 lakhs. In case a society or a group of societies agree to execute the necessary agreement with this Corporation for purchase of the aforesaid quantity of chanks they may contact the undersigned.";