- (1.) This order shall dispose of LPA Nos.1569 to 1575, 1598 to 1601, 1628 to 1630, 1635 of 2011 and 206 of 2012 as all of them have arisen out of a common order dated 04.04.2011 passed by learned Single Judge, allowing bunch of writ petitions preferred by the respondent-rice mills. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) who was one of the party respondents in the writ petitions and is aggrieved by the order of the learned Single Judge, has preferred these Letters Patent Appeals.
(2.) The State of Haryana in exercise of its power under Section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1985 has issued the Haryana Rice Procurement (Levy) Order, 1985 with an object to maintain supply of rice for securing equitable distribution and its availability at fair prices. The 1985 Order enables the authorities of State Government to direct a rice-miller to convert any stock of paddy held by Government, its agency or FCI, in to rice on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the Government. Various rice-mills including the respondents have been engaged by the State Government and its agencies for custom milling of rice (commonly known as CMR. Policy circular dated 19.09.2008 has also been issued requiring the millers to deliver rice after custom milling to FCI. Allotment of paddy to the millers is made by district-level Committee comprising Officers of the procurement agencies like respondent No.6 (HAFED), including FCI.
(3.) Every rice miller in terms of the aforesaid arrangement enters into an agreement with the procurement agency. All the respondent-rice millers in the instant cases also entered into Bipartite Agreements with the procuring agency, namely, HAFED, to which FCI is admittedly not a party. The respondent-rice mills have placed these Agreements on record. For instance, in CWP No.5281 of 2010 (M/s. Inder Singh Ajit Singh, Bhagat Mandi, Karnal v. State of Haryana & Ors.), the Bipartite Agreement between the said rice mill and HAFED, made on 29.09.2008 (KMS 2008-09) is appended as Annexure P4 whereas similar Bipartite Agreement dated 29.09.2009 for the next KMS 2009-10 has been appended as Annexure P7.;