Lekha G
The Madhya Pradesh High Court in a case seeking grant of firearm license held that the licensing authority must be wary of those needs purely fueled by a desire to flaunt or parade in public the firearm as a fashion trend.
The Court was hearing the case of Gurdeep Singh Dhinjal v. State of M.P. & Ors. where, a businessman carrying on business in the entire Gwalior district and nearby areas requested to grant a firearm license for self-defence under Sections 3 and 4 of Arms Act, 1959 as the Gwalior area is notified as dacoit affected area.
The petitioner had challenged the order of rejection by the State Government in the instant petition.
The Court observed that refusal of the license is an exception and that it can be refused under provisions of Section 14 of the Act that said that the ground on which the application had been rejected i.e. absence of threat on life or property of a person isn’t available to the authorities.
The Bench of Justice S.A. Dharmadhikari observed, “An individual’s own feeling of insecurity is an important factor. So, it needs to be respected and considered on the touch-stone of his own psyche, physical and mental makeup and other factors contained in Section 14 of the Arms Act.”
The Court noted that there were no factors that made the petitioner incompetent for acquiring a firearm license.
It was further added that the State Authorities had not considered relevant factors while passing the impugned order and further directed them to reconsider the claim of the petitioner and pass a speaking order within a period of three months.