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Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:118820 Court No. - 33 Case :- WRIT - C No. - 23461 of 2025 Petitioner :- Manoj Singh Respondent :- The State Of Up And Another Counsel for Petitioner :- Akhilesh Kumar Singh,Jitendra Kumar Tiwari Counsel for Respondent :- C.S.C. Hon'ble Prakash Padia,J.
1. The petitioner has preferred present petition with the prayer to direct the respondent No.2/District Magistrate, Varanasi to decide the application dated 11.09.2019 for grant Firearm License to the petitioner.
2. It is argued by learned counsel for the petitioner that the application for grant of firearm license has been filed by the petitioner on 11.09.2019 before the respondent No.2/District Magistrate, Varanasi. It is argued that considerable time has already been lapsed but till date no final decision has been taken in the matter.
3. On the other hand, it is argued by learned Standing Counsel that the respondent No.2 will take a decision in the matter expeditiously.
4. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record.
5. Time and again such kind of matters are coming before this Court for deciding the application for grant of Firearm License which are pending before the District Magistrate concerned. The Arms Act and the Rules itself provide the timeline within which such applications are to be decided. However, the aforesaid timeline are not being honoured by the District Magistrate concerned and as a result of the same, flood of litigation are coming before this Court for seeking direction that the application
for grant of fire arms license/renewal of arms license be decided in a time bound manner. The Court has passed various orders in such type of matters and pursuant to the decision taken by this Court, the Government has issued a Government Order dated 10.3.2025 directing all the District Magistrates to comply with the timelines provided for consideration of the application for grant of firearm license.
6. In the facts and circumstances of the case, the present petition is
disposed of directing the respondent No.2/District Magistrate, Varanasi to decide the aforesaid application in the light of Government Order dated 10.03.2025 most expeditiously and preferably within a period of six weeks from the date of production of certified copy of this order unless there is no legal impediment.
7. In case the decision has already been taken by the respondent No.2/District Magistrate, Varanasi on the aforesaid application, the same will be communicated to the petitioner forthwith.
Order Date :- 22.7.2025 Pramod Tripathi Digitally signed by :- PRAMOD TRIPATHI High Court of Judicature at Allahabad