SUBHAN TOURS & TRAVEL SERVICESversusUNION OF INDIA

                             [2016] 2 S.C.R. 768



A               SUBHAN TOURS & TRAVEL SERVICES
                                      v.
                             UNION OF INDIA
                     (Writ Petition No. 239 of2016 etc.)
B                              MAYl8,2016.
    [ABHAY MANOHAR SAPRE AND ASHOK BHUSHAN, JJ.)
          Haj - Writ petition u/Art. 32 of Constitution - By Private Tour
    Operators (PTO) - Seeking direction to the authorities c;oncerned
C   to consider their application for registration as PTO for conducting
    Haj tours for the year 2016-17 - Held: Liberty granted to each
    writ petitioner to make a fresh application on or before 27.5.2016
    as prescribed for grant of permission to take the pilgrims for haj
    for the year 2016 to the prescribed authority -Authority concerned
    directed to examine, consider and decit:/e each such application on
D   its merit strictly in accordance with law by passing a reasoned order
    - Writ petitions disposed of - Constitution of India - Art.32.
          Union of India & Ors. vs. Rajique Shaikh Bhikan &
          Ors. 2013 (5) SCR 428 = 2013 (4) SCC 699; Jeddah
          Travels & Jeddah Hajj Group vs. Union of India 2014
E         (14) SCC 378 - referred to.
                              Case Law Reference
       2013 (5) SCR 428         referred to              Para9
       2014 (14) sec 378        referred to              Para\I
F        CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION: Writ Petition (Civil) No. 239
    of2016.
         Under Artcile 32 of the Constitution oflndia.
                                WITH
         W. P. NOS. 844 & 845 OF 2015
G
         W. P. NOS. 70, 71, 72, 166, 211, 246, 263, 279, 280,318, 319,320,
    325,344,286,317,64,362,363,364,310,360,328,369,368,2620F
    2016.                                                  ,.

        V. Giri, Sr. Adv., Nikhil Goel, Marsook Bafaki, Sayid Marzook
H   Bafaki, Zulfiker Ali P. S., Faisal M. Aboo Baiker, Harshad V. Hameed,
                                       768
SUBHAN TOURS & TRAVEL SERVICES v. UNION OF INDIA                               769



Dileep Poolakkot, Mrs. Ashly Harshad, Z. U. Khan, Syed lmtiyaz Ali,             A
R. D. Upadhyay, K. Raghavacharyulu, Kailash Pandey, Ranjeet Singh,
Arindam Dey, K. V. Sreekumar, Z. U. Khan, Chandra Bhushan Prasad,
Mohd. Ainu) Ansari, Manoj Kumar Goyal for the Petitioner.
    Neeraj Kishan Kaul, ASG, Bhuban Mishra, Ritin Rai, Ms. Sweta
Garg, Siddhartha Jha, Ms. Sadhvi Mohindru, B. Krishna Prasad for the            B
Respondents.
     The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
      ABHAY MANOHAR SAPRE, J. I. This decision shall dispose
of all the writ petitions because as stated by the learned counsel
appearing for the parties, all these writ petitions essentially involve         C
common issues.
     2. These writ petitions are filed by the writ petitioners under Article
32 of the Constitution oflndia for claiming following reliefs.
      "(a) Issue a Writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus
                                                                                D
      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
                                                                                E
      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             F
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 undertaking tlte similar tour this
year also which is essentially a tour for the benefit of pilgrims go fog for
Hajj.                                                                           G

      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
                                                                                H
770             SUPREME COURT REPORTS                           (2016] 2 S.C.R.


A     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
B     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 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
c     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.
D          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
 E    made by the learned Additional Solicitor General. We, therefore, express
      no opinion on any of the issues.
            7. Learned counsel appearing in three writ petitions namely
      Writ Petition Nos. 262, 263 and 364 of2016, however, made attempt to
      urge that the cases of these three writ petitions involve some different
 F    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. ln 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
 G    by granting Iiberty 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
 H
        SUBHAN TOURS & TRAVEL SERVICES v. UNION OF                              771
           INDIA [ABHAY MANOHAR SAPRE, J.]

· strictly in accordance with law and keeping in view the law laid down in       A
  the decisions of this Court in Union oflndia & Ors. vs. Rafique Shaikh
  Bhikan & Ors., 2013 (4) SCC 699, Order dated 07.0~.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
                                                                                 B
  etc.etc. entitled Jeddah Travels & Jeddah Hajj Group vs. Union of
  India, Order dated 12.05.2015 passed in I.A. No. 33 of2015 in Special
  Leave Petition (c) No. 28609/2011 entitled Union oflndia 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 oflndia.
       10. Let the applications be decided by the concerned authority by         c
 passing a reasoned order on each application on or before 29.06.2016
 and the order so passed be communicated to each applicant (writ
 petitioner) immediately.

      11. The writ petitions are disposed of.
                                                                                  D
 Kalpana K. Tripathy                                   Petitions disposed of.