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Reportable

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION

WRIT PETITION NO. 239 OF 2016

 Subhan Tours & Travel Services           Petitioner (s)

VERSUS

Union of India Respondent(s)

WITH

WRIT PETITION Nos. 844 & 845 OF 2015, 70, 71 & 72 of 2016, 831 of 2015, 166, 211, 246, 263, 279, 280,318, 319, 320, 325, 344, 286, 317, 64, 362, 363, 364,310, 360, 328, 369, 368 & 262 of 2016

J U D G M E N T

                 Abhay Manohar Sapre, J.     

1) This  decision  shall  dispose  of  all  the  writ

petitions  because  as  stated  by  the  learned  counsel

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appearing  for  the  parties,  all  these  writ  petitions

essentially involve common issues.

2) These  writ   petitions  are  filed  by  the  writ

petitioners under Article 32 of the Constitution of India

for claiming following reliefs.

“(a)  Issue  a  Writ,  order  or  direction  in  the nature  of  Mandamus  commanding  and directing  the  respondents  to  accept application  for  registration  and  issue Registration  Certificate  as  PTO  under Category II for conducting Haj Tour, 2016;

(b) Issue  a  Writ,  order  or  direction  in  the nature  of  Mandamus  commanding  and directing the respondents to consider the right of first registration to the Petitioner for conducting Haj Tour, 2016-2017;

(c) Pass such other and further orders as this Hon’ble Court may think fit in the interest of justice and equity.”

3) The  writ  petitioners  are  private  tour  operators

(PTOs)  who are sending pilgrims for Hajj.  According

to  them, they are duly  registered and qualified tour

operators who have so far undertaken several tours for

Hajj  successfully  in  the  past  and  there  is  nothing

against  any  of  them,  which  may  debar  them  from

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undertaking the similar tour this year also which is

essentially a tour for the benefit of pilgrims going for

Hajj.

4) It appears from the reading of the writ petitions

that these writ petitioners have a grievance based on

some kind of apprehension that their applications, if

made or those which are pending with the authorities

for grant of permission to undertake Hajj Yatra for the

current year 2016, are likely to be rejected or would be

rejected thereby making their  apprehension a reality

and grievance infructuous.  It  is  essentially  with this

kind  of  apprehension  asserted  in  the  writ  petitions,

these  writ  petitions  are  filed  for  grant  of

aforementioned reliefs.

5)  Shri  Neeraj  Kishan  Kaul,  learned  Additional

Solicitor General appearing for the respondent-Union

of India at the very outset fairly made a statement that

so  far  no  decision  has  been  taken  on  any  of  the

applications made by these PTOs (writ petitioners) by

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the authorities.  Learned counsel  also  stated that  let

each writ petitioner make a fresh application for grant

of  permission with necessary details  and documents

as prescribed latest by 27.05.2016 to the concerned

authorities  and  each  such  application  once  made

would  be  examined,  considered  and  decided  in

accordance with law on its  individual  merits  by the

authorities  concerned  and  reasoned  order  would  be

passed on each such application latest by 29.06.2016

under intimation to each applicant.

6) Though learned counsel  for  the writ  petitioners

and  learned  Additional  Solicitor  General  argued  the

matter with reference to previous orders passed by this

Court on the issues sought to be raised, we are not

inclined to go into any of these questions because as

mentioned above, it is not necessary to go into it at all

in  the  light  of  the  statement  made  by  the  learned

Additional Solicitor General. We, therefore, express no

opinion on any of the issues.

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7) Learned counsel appearing in three writ petitions

namely Writ Petition Nos. 262, 263 and 364 of 2016,

however,  made attempt to urge that the cases of these

three  writ  petitions  involve  some different  point.  We

have heard the learned counsel and find that at this

stage it is not necessary to go into the merits of writ

petitions.

8) In the light of aforesaid discussion and keeping in

view the  statement  made by  the  Additional  Solicitor

General on behalf of the respondent-Union of India, we

dispose  of  these  writ  petitions  finally  by  granting

liberty  to  each  writ  petitioner  to  make  a  fresh

application  with  all  the  necessary  details  with  the

documents  as  prescribed  for  grant  of  permission  to

take  the  pilgrims  for  Hajj  for  the  year  2016  on  or

before 27.05.2016 to the prescribed authority.  

9) On  such  application(s)  being  made,  the

concerned  authority  would  examine,  consider  and

decide each such application on its  merit  strictly  in

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accordance with law and keeping in view the law laid

down in the decisions of this Court in  Union of India

& Ors. vs. Rafique Shaikh Bhikan & Ors.,  2013 (4)

SCC 699,   Order dated 07.08.2014 passed in Special

Leave Petition (c)  No.  20743/2014 entitled  Union of

India  &  Ors.  vs.  All  India  Haj  Umrah  Tour

Organizers  Association  &  Ors.,  Order  dated

07.08.2014  passed  in  Writ  Petition  (civil)  No.

480/2014 etc.etc. entitled  Jeddah Travels & Jeddah

Hajj  Group  vs.  Union  of  India,  Order  dated

12.05.2015 passed in I.A. No. 33  of 2015 in Special

Leave Petition (c)  No.  28609/2011 entitled  Union of

India  vs.  Rafique  Sheikh  Bhikan  and  others and

Order  dated  23.07.2015 in  W.P.(civil)  No.  344/2015

entitled  Alban  Hajj  Umrah  Service  vs.  Union  of

India.  

10) Let the applications be decided by the concerned

authority  by  passing  a  reasoned  order  on  each

application on or before 29.06.2016 and the order so

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passed  be  communicated  to  each  applicant(writ

petitioner) immediately.    

11) The writ petitions are disposed of.   

                                    .……...................................J.                     [ABHAY MANOHAR SAPRE]                  

                    ………..................................J.                      [ASHOK BHUSHAN]

New Delhi, May 18, 2016.

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