The Bombay High Court on Thursday allowed NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar–led Baramati Agro Ltd to proceed with its sugarcane crushing licence after the company agreed to deposit 50% of the levy imposed by the Maharashtra government towards the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund and other welfare bodies. The firm has challenged the legality of the levy, arguing that it lacks legislative backing.
A vacation bench of Justice Manjusha Deshpande directed Baramati Agro Ltd to deposit 50% of the total levy amount under all three heads within three days. The court said the company’s crushing licence for the 2025–26 season should be processed in the meantime.
“In the meanwhile, the authority shall process the crushing licence of the petitioner in view of the undertaking given by the petitioner,” the bench observed. It clarified that if the firm eventually succeeds in its petition, the amount deposited would be refunded with interest.
The court issued notice to the Maharashtra government and other concerned authorities and posted the matter for further hearing on November 13.
On September 30, the state government decided to impose a levy of Rs 10 per tonne of sugarcane crushed each towards the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund and the Gopinath Munde Sugarcane Workers Welfare Corporation, and Rs 5 per tonne towards the Flood Relief Fund.
The decision was formally communicated to sugar factories through a letter dated October 27 from the Commissioner of Sugar, which made the levy payment a precondition for obtaining the crushing licence for the 2025–26 season.
Senior advocate Girish Godbole, appearing for Baramati Agro, argued that the conditional issuance of crushing licences was “onerous” and lacked any statutory basis. He informed the court that similar petitions challenging the government’s levy policy had been filed before the High Court’s Kolhapur bench, where the petitioners were allowed to deposit 50% of the amount pending adjudication.
Godbole said Baramati Agro was willing to make a similar 50% payment towards the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund and the Gopinath Munde Ustod Kamgar Kalyan Mahamandal, but sought exemption from the Rs 5 per tonne flood relief levy, claiming it was unsupported by any executive order or law.
However, Justice Deshpande directed the firm to deposit 50% of the levy under all three heads to ensure timely processing of its crushing licence.
The government’s decision has triggered strong reactions from opposition leaders, including NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, who criticised the move, saying the state should assist rain-affected farmers directly instead of shifting the burden to sugarcane cultivators.
The state, on the other hand, has defended the levy as a necessary step to raise immediate funds for flood-affected families in the Marathwada region, which recently witnessed severe rainfall and flooding.
