Law: West Punjab Rehabilitation Ordinance (IV of 1947)

Section: 2(g), 30

West Punjab Cotton Control Act (IV of 1949), Ss. 2(g) & 30 Word "occupier" in S. 30- Wider is connotation than word owner Petitioner firm a lessee of allotee/owner of factory Lease deed entrusting management to lessee and making him liable to pay all taxes and to represent interests of allottee owner-Held, petitioner firm falls within definition of "occupier" and liable to pay cotton fee. Date of hearing : 14th May 1973.   JUDGMENT The petitioner firm has, by this writ petition, called in question its liability to pay the cotton fee in respect of cotton ginning season 1960-6I on various groun0s, but the one pressed by the learned counsel is that the petitioner/firm was not the occupier of the concerned cotton factory (teak. Punjab Cotton Factory, Toba Tel Singh) and because, under the law, only the occupier is liable to pay the cotton fee, therefore, the peti tioner was not liable. 2. As explained by the learned counsel for the petitioner, by virtue of unamended clause (b) of section 30 of West Punjab Cotton Control Act, 1949, only owners could be required to pay cotton fee but subsequently by the Punjab Cotton Control Act, 1953, clause (p) aforementioned was amended. The amend ment included substitution of the word "occupiers" for "owners" He states that the question of retrospectivity or otherwise of the amendment or any notification is not involved in this case and frankly conceded that if the petitioner falls within the definition of word "occupier" in section 2(q) of the Cotton Control Act, he would have no case. The definition relied upon reads as follows:-- "Occupier means the person who has ultimate control of the affairs of a factory and includes the Manager or Managing Agent or other person or persons authorised to represent the occupation." Learned counsel asserted that the petitioner/firm was a lessee, therefore, it would not fall under the definition of occupier. In this behalf, he is relied on provisions of section 9 of the, Act whereby a cotton ginning factory cannot be worked without a license granted to the occupier thereof and because, according to him, the petitioner firm…