Madras High Court: While deciding the question that whether the Implementation Committee of Retired Judges set up to decide the eligibility of the hawkers to hawk their goods from different zones of Chennai is also authorized to review and cancel the licenses allotted to them, the Division Bench comprising S.K. Kaul, C.J. and M. Sathyanarayanan, J. observed that even though the decision of allotment to the hawkers was taken by the Implementation Committee, but the licenses were issued by the Commissioner of the Corporation of Chennai therefore the final decision as regards to the cancellation rests with the Commissioner only.
In the instant case the Implementation Committee had allotted spaces to the hawkers in different zones of Chennai but on receipt of several complaints the Committee sought to review the allotments. The counsel for the petitioner Ms. D. Nagasaila contended that the Implementation Committee was not conferred the power to review and cancel the allotment, such power lies with the Commissioner. The respondent counsel Mr M.G. Ramachandran argued that the Committee had been conferred with wide powers.
Perusing the facts and arguments, the Court observed that the designated authority under the Chennai City Municipal Corporation Act, 1919 has to take the final call to cancel the issued licenses as they had been issued in furtherance of the decision of the Implementation Committee. The Court further observed that once the licence is issued, even if the Implementation Committee comes to the conclusion that it ought to be cancelled, the final decision has to be with the Commissioner, especially when it would entail the eviction and removal of the space of those licensees whose licenses are cancelled. K. Parvathy v. The Corporation of Chennai, Writ Petition No.20001 of 2014, decided on 04.09.2014
