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TMI Blog2023 (11) TMI 728X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of shrimps was involved. The respondents therein claimed benefit on the basis of export of prawns and import of the inputs. It was an admitted fact that the benefits, which the respondents therein were seeking, were to be extended through the port situated at Chennai. As those benefits were not admitted for various reasons, the respondents therein filed special civil applications before the High Court at Ahmedabad. Had it been a case that the respondents have refused to grant the benefit of exemption from payment of customs duty only on the ground of payment through cash mode, it would have been an integral part of cause of action as the petitioner was required to prove this fact, unless traversed, to succeed in getting the relief sought in the writ petition. All other facts stated in the petition, indisputably, which otherwise could be treated as integral part of cause of action, even according to the petitioner, have arisen outside the territorial jurisdiction of this Court. In the writ petition, it has been stated that a mail was sent for grant of clearance of goods, but the same has not been accepted. It has not even been averred categorically in the writ petition that t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pondents No. 1 and 2 argued on the issue of territorial jurisdiction of this Court in entertaining the writ petition stating that to decide the aforesaid issue of territorial jurisdiction, reply is not necessary. 2. We have heard learned counsel for the parties on the objection to the territorial jurisdiction of this Court to entertain this writ petition. 3. Learned counsel for Respondents No. 1 and 2 contended that as no part of cause of action has arisen within the territorial jurisdiction of this Court, this Court would not have jurisdiction and the objection to maintainability of the writ petition is liable to be sustained. Learned counsel further argued that the facts as pleaded in the writ petition essentially seek to challenge the validity of notification no. 49/2023-Customs and 50/2023-Customs, dated 25.08.2023 issued by the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Government of India mainly on the ground that they allow export of goods where payment has been done by only one mode, i.e., irrevocable letters of credit and seek to exclude the export of goods where payment has been made by other modes including by advance payment, with statement of facts that the peti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rs (2023) 7 SCC 791. 4. Per contra, learned counsel for the petitioner contended that the petitioner seeks to challenge the validity of the notification on the proposed ground that it is discriminatory and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India as it seeks to extend the benefit on the basis of payment only through one mode, i.e., letters of credit and excluding all other modes. The factum of payment having been received at Jaipur through the mode of Foreign Inward Remittance is not only relevant but integral to the cause of action and, therefore, a part of cause of action has arisen within the territorial jurisdiction of this Court. Learned counsel for the petitioner further contended that the petitioner is not only carrying its business and having registered office at Jaipur, the contracts were also entered into between the petitioner and the purchasers situated in different countries, at Jaipur. According to him, receipt of payment through the mode of Foreign Inward Remittance is the basis to challenge notification no. 50/2023- Customs dated 25.08.2023, which on its literal reading, denies the benefit. In support of his submissions, learned counsel for the petiti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e respondents levying 20% duty (on value) on the export of Parboiled Rice effective immediately/from the date of coming into force of the said notification. Another notification bearing no. 50/2023-Customs dated 25.08.2023 was also issued by the respondents wherein it was notified that the export duty, imposed vide notification no. 49/2023-Customs shall remain effective till 15.10.2023. It was also notified that the quantity of Parboiled Rice that has entered the customs stations for the purpose of exportation before 25th day of August, 2023 and for which the proper officer has not issued an order permitting clearance and which is backed by irrevocable letters of credit would continue to be exempted/shall remain exempted from the duty so levied. Both the aforesaid notifications have also been placed on record. 8. The petitioner then pleaded that the petitioner's cargo containing Parboiled Rice forming the subject matter of the aforementioned three contracts entered the customs entry gate for exportation on 25.08.2023 between 16:19 hours (4:19 PM) and 21:35 hours (9:25 PM), which, as pleaded, was well before the publication of two notifications, which according to the petitio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ssuance of notifications. Further ground raised is that though notification no. 50/2023-Customs dated 25.08.2023 allows export of goods without payment of customs duty in those cases where export of goods are backed by irrevocable letters of credit, on literal reading, the same seeks to exclude, as a class, all those cases of export of goods where payments have been made by other modes including advance payment, as is the case of the petitioner. 11. If we look into the entire pleadings in the writ petition, there is nothing to show that the clearance has been withheld on the ground that payment is through the mode of cash and not through irrevocable letters of credit. In fact, there is no specific averment to that effect in the writ petition that only on that ground, clearance has been refused insisting on payment of customs duty. Rather, all other facts pleaded in the writ petition which relate to entering the goods in customs station for the purpose of exportation before 25th day of August, 2023, without there being any order permitting clearance issued by proper officer have been stated. The petitioner, without any basis, has assumed that clearance is not being provided an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... respondents herein plead that as per the plea raised by them in para 16 of the special civil application, the following facts give rise to the cause of action conferring territorial jurisdiction on the Court at Ahmedabad. They are: (i) the respondents carry on their business of export and import from Ahmedabad; (ii) their orders of export and import are placed from and are executed at Ahmedabad; (iii) documents and payments for export and import are sent/made at Ahmedabad; (iv) the credit of duty claimed in respect of exports were handled from Ahmedabad since export orders were received at Ahmedabad and payments also received at Ahmedabad; (v) non-granting and denial of utilisation of the credit in the passbook will affect the business of the respondents at Ahmedabad; (vi) the respondents have executed a bank guarantee through their bankers at Ahmedabad as well as a bond at Ahmedabad. It is, thus, clear that grievance was with regard to non-grant and denial of utilisation of the credit in the pass book. In para 12 of the aforesaid decision, the admitted facts relevant for the purpose of conferring territorial jurisdiction in order to find out whe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ion in relation to the territories within which the cause of action, wholly or in part, arises for the exercise of such power, notwithstanding that the seat of such Government or authority or the residence of such person is not within those territories. 16. It is clear from the above constitutional provision that a High Court can exercise the jurisdiction in relation to the territories within which the cause of action, wholly or in part, arises. This provision in the Constitution has come up for consideration in a number of cases before this Court. In this regard, it would suffice for us to refer to the observations of this Court in the case of Oil and Natural Gas Commission v. Utpal Kumar Basu (1994) 4 SCC 711 (SCC at p. 713) wherein it was held: Under Article 226 a High Court can exercise the power to issue directions, orders or writs for the enforcement of any of the fundamental rights conferred by Part III of the Constitution or for any other purpose if the cause of action, wholly or in part, had arisen within the territories in relation to which it exercises jurisdiction, notwithstanding that the seat of the Government or authority or the residence of the person ag ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Chennai were handled by the respondents from Ahmedabad have also no connection whatsoever with the actions of the appellants impugned in the application. The non-granting and denial of credit in the passbook having an ultimate effect, if any, on the business of the respondents at Ahmedabad would not also, in our opinion, give rise to any such cause of action to a court at Ahmedabad to adjudicate on the actions complained against the appellants. The considerations as above were applied to the factual premise of that case and it was authoritatively held by the Hon'ble Supreme Court that all those facts stated in para 13 would not constitute even a part of cause of action so as to give territorial jurisdiction to the High Court at Ahmedabad. Crucial aspect taken into consideration was that unless the facts pleaded are such which have nexus and relevance with the lis involved in the case, the same would not constitute integral part of the cause of action so as to say that it arose within the territorial jurisdiction of the High Court at Ahmedabad. 15. The aforesaid principle was lucidly reiterated by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in recent judicial pronouncement in the cas ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... stated that all the respondents are located within the territorial jurisdiction of the High Court which is factually incorrect. The cause of action in the aforesaid case was explained as below : 16. The expression cause of action has not been defined in the Constitution. However, the classic definition of cause of action given by Lord Brett in Cooke vs. Gill (1873) LR 8 CP 107 that cause of action means every fact which it would be necessary for the plaintiff to prove, if traversed, in order to support his right to the judgment of the court , has been accepted by this Court in a couple of decisions. It is axiomatic that without a cause, there cannot be any action. However, in the context of a writ petition, what would constitute such cause of action is the material facts which are imperative for the writ petitioner to plead and prove to obtain relief as claimed. 17. Determination of the question as to whether the facts pleaded constitute a part of the cause of action, sufficient to attract clause (2) of Article 226 of the Constitution, would necessarily involve an exercise by the High Court to ascertain that the facts, as pleaded, constitute a material, essent ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ase). As a result, the Shipping Department of the Government of India issued an order on 12-4-2011 cancelling the registration of the appellant as a seaman. A copy of the letter was sent to the appellant at his native place in Bihar where he was staying after he was found medically unfit. It further appears that the appellant sent a representation from his home in the State of Bihar to the respondent claiming disability compensation. The said representation was replied by the respondent, which was addressed to him on his home address in Gaya, Bihar rejecting his claim for disability compensation. It is further evident that when the appellant was signed off and declared medically unfit, he returned back to his home in the District of Gaya, Bihar and, thereafter, he made all claims and filed representation from his home address at Gaya and those letters and representations were entertained by the respondents and replied and a decision on those representations were communicated to him on his home address in Bihar. Admittedly, the appellant was suffering from serious heart muscles disease (dilated cardiomyopathy) and breathing problem which forced him to stay in native place, wherefrom ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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