Delhi High Court: The Division Bench of Manmohan and Navin Chawla, JJ. directed that proceedings against Subway Systems (India) Private Ltd. be dropped in a case against its franchisee Dough Makers (India) Private Limited.
Instant appeal was filed challenging the final order passed by the National Anti-profiteering Authority where it had been held that M/s Dough Makers India (P). Ltd. had profiteered to the extent of Rs 78,41,754/-
Petitioner also sought direction to NAPA to drop the proceedings against the petitioner as a respondent in the case of DGAP v. Dough Makers (P) Ltd., [Case No. 1 of 2021]
Analysis, Law and Decision
Bench opined that it is settled law that in order to have the locus standi to invoke the extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the applicant should ordinarily be one who has a personal or individual right in the subject matter of the application.
Infringement of some legal rights or prejudice to some legal interest inhering in the petitioner is necessary to give him a locus standi in the matter. [Jasbhai Motibhai Desai v. Roshan Kumar, Haji Bashir Ahmed, (1976) 1 SCC 671]
Further, the Court stated that in the present matter, petitioner had not been held guilty of the violation of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and NAPA had no objection if the petitioner was deleted from the array of parties, this Court opined that the petitioner had no locus standi to maintain the present petition.
Hence, the notice referred by the petitioner’s counsel is deemed to have been withdrawn.
Present writ petition along with pending applications were disposed of by dropping the proceedings against the Petitioner as a Respondent in the case of DGAP v. Dough Makers India (P) Ltd., Case No. 1 of 2021. [Subway Systems India (P) Ltd. v. Union of India, 2021 SCC OnLine Del 4094, decided on 16-08-2021]
Advocates before the Court:
For the Petitioner: Abhishek A. Rastogi with Pratyushprava Saha, Advocates.
For the Respondents: Zoheb Hossain with Tulika Gupta and Vivek Gurnani, Advocates for Respondents-NAA and DGAP