D.G.R.PATNAIK, J. - (1.) IN this writ application filed by way of public interest litigation, petitioner has made the following prayers: (i) For issuance of an appropriate writ declaring the provisions of Section 3(1)(f)(ii) of the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 (hereinafter referred to as 'SICA' as violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. (ii) For issuance of a writ commanding upon the State of Jharkhand and Union of India to make protective arrangement with respect to Sick Small Scale Industries similar to the benefit under Section 22 of the SICA extended to companies/undertakings as defined under Section 3 of the Act. (iii) For issuance of appropriate writ for conscionable justice to the small scale industries established within the State of Jharkhand.
(2.) BRIEFLY stated, the issue raised by the petitioner is that exclusion of Small Scale Industrial Unit from the definition of Industrial Undertaking under Section 3(1)(f)(ii) of the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 and failure of the legislature to enact any such provision, analogous to the provisions of Section 22 of the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 for the protection of Sick Small Scale Industries amounts to discrimination between the large and small scale industries and is, therefore, violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India. The grievance stems out from the fact that by their exclusion from the provisions of the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985. Small Scale Industries are deprived of the protection in the matter of recovery proceedings initiated against them by the Financial Institutions. Counter affidavit has been filed by the respondents, in which it is sought to be explained that the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 was specially enacted for the purposes of rehabilitation of large and medium Sick Industrial Undertakings, which were established after investing more than Rs. 1.00 crore. The Small Scale Industrial Undertakings established with the amount of investment below Rs. 1.00 crore, have been intentionally omitted from the purview of the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 on the basis of reasonable classification and such classification is not discriminatory.
(3.) THOUGH , neither the counsel for the petitioner nor counsel for the respondents pointed out, but it has been brought to our notice that the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 stands repealed with effect from 1st January, 2004 by the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Repeal Act, 2003.;