HC quashes Panchayat order cancelling licence to Pepsico

Kochi, Apr 10 (UNI) The Kerala High Court today quashed an order of the Pudussery Gram Panchayat in Palakkad district cancelling the licence granted to the Pepsico to operate its plant at Kanjikkode.

A Division Bench Comprising Acting Chief Justice K S Radhakrishnan and Justice M N Krishnan observed that the Panchayat had no jurisdiction over regions notified as industrial area by the government.

The company moved the Court challenging the order of the Panchayat cancelling its licence following allegations about over-exploitation of groundwater.

The Court observed that the Panchayat ''in our view has no jurisdiction in the matter of issue or renewal of licence to the company since the Legislature in its wisdom has excluded the area in question from the purview of the Panchayati Raj Act.'' The Bench further said, ''courts cannot be blamed for this predicament. The Legislature and Executive in their wisdom excluded the industrial area from the purview of the Panchayati Raj Act, with the result that the Panchayat cannot take steps under the Act''.

The Court also observed that right to live enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution implied right to food, water, among others.

Providing drinking water is the concern of the Panchayat as well as the State since they have expressed their concern about depletion of groundwater. The authorities functioning under the Groundwater Act have a duty to examine whether the Pepsi company is using excessive groundwater so as to deplete the water source affecting the people.

UNI