Relief to More Retail: Karnataka HC quashes endorsement demanding Transfer of Excise License Fee [Read Judgment]

In a relief to More Retail, the Karnataka High Court quashed the endorsement demanding the transfer of excise license fee.

The petitioner,  More Retail Pvt. Ltd. has filed a bunch of petitions has sought a direction to the respondents to effect the change of name of the petitioner’s Company i.e. M/s More Retail Limited to M/s More Retail Private Limited in excise license Form CL-2 issued by the Government of Karnataka, Department of Excise on various dates. Some of them expired.

The Petitioners submitted applications to the Department of Excise for change of name in the respective excise licenses which stood in the name of M/s More Retail Limited to that of M/s More Retail Private Limited. The official respondents have not acted on the petitioner’s grievance relating to the change of name in the excise license CL-2 issued in the name of M/s More Retail Limited to that of M/s More Retail Private Limited. Hence the present petitions. The official respondents have issued a notice with reference to Rule 17-B of Rules, 1967, and demanded transfer of excise license fee vide endorsement in respect of license is the subject matter of writ petition.

Mr. D.R. Ravi Shankar on behalf of the petitioner submitted that initially the Company’s name was M/s Aditya Birla Retail Limited and it was changed to M/s More Retail Limited and further to M/s More Retail Private Limited. The excise license CL-2 stands in the name of M/s More Retail Limited. Government of India, Ministry of Corporate Affairs permitted change of name from M/s Aditya Birla Retail Limited to M/s More Retail Limited. Consequently, it was further renamed as M/s More Retail Private Limited.

The Single Judge Bench of Justice P.V. Bajanthri held that the impugned endorsement issued by the Office of the Excise Deputy Commissioner is non est in the eye of the law since the source of law is not available so as to permit petitioner, M/s More Retail Limited to transfer the excise license which stands in the name of M/s Aditya Birla Retail Limited is the name of M/s More Retail Limited.

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