Shivam Yadav Vs State of U.P. and Another — Allahabad HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

Shivam Yadav Vs State of U.P. and Another — Allahabad HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Writ petition disposed of with direction to respondent no. 2 (District Collector, Prayagraj / licensing authority) to decide the petitioner's pending application for grant of arms licence within two months from production of certified copy of the order; failing which cost/compensation @ Rs.100/- per day of delay is payable by respondent no. 2 and recoverable from the salary of erring officials.

Issue for consideration

Whether a writ of mandamus should issue commanding respondent no. 2 to sanction the petitioner an arms licence for the NPB 315 Bore Rifle on account of family heirloom in terms of his application dated 30.11.2023. +2 more

Ratio / Principle

Since the petitioner's application for grant of arms licence is pending before respondent no. 2, District Collector, Prayagraj, the licensing authority shall decide the application within two months from the date of production of certified copy of this order.

Key takeaways

If the application for grant of arms licence is not disposed of within the granted two-month period, the petitioner shall be entitled to cost/compensation at Rs.100/- per day for each day of delay thereafter, payable at first instance by respondent no. 2 and recoverable by respondent no. 2 from the salary of the erring officials; this cost/compensation is in addition to other legal remedies available to the petitioner including enforcement of the order in accordance with law.ratio¶13
The large number of petitions before the Court seeking directions to consider applications for grant/renewal of arms licences indicates that licensing authorities are not deciding such applications time-bound, which may be indicative of red tapism, negligence or corrupt practices; citizen applications are required to be considered in a time bound manner.obiter¶11

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Arms Licence – Delay in disposal – Mandamus – Allahabad High Court (Hon'ble Vikram D. Chauhan, J.), WRIT - C No. - 6197 of 2025, decided 4.3.2025 (Neutral Citation 2025:AHC:30034): Petitioner sought mandamus to sanction arms licence for NPB 315 Bore Rifle No.AB06-10487 (family heirloom) per application dated 30.11.2023 pending before respondent no. 2, District Collector, Prayagraj. Court observed large numbers of similar petitions suggest licensing authorities are not acting time-bound, possibly indicating red tapism, negligence or corrupt practices. Directed that the application be decided by the licensing authority within two months of production of certified copy of the order; on failure, petitioner entitled to cost/compensation @ Rs.100/- per day of delay, payable by respondent no. 2 at first instance and recoverable from salary of erring officials, in addition to other legal remedies. Writ petition disposed of accordingly.