01-08-2025
Co-op society seeks nod to sell Rs500 stamp papers amid black market crisis
Nagpur: Amid a stamp paper shortage that led to black marketing and mounting complaints from lawyers and citizens, the Advocates Multi-State Multi-Purpose Co-operative Society Limited moved the Nagpur bench of the Bombay high court seeking permission to sell Rs500 denomination stamp papers.
The society also urged the court to remove the existing cap of Rs8 lakh on monthly sales, calling it "unrealistic for a city with high legal demand".
The application, filed through advocate Shreerang Bhandarkar, was submitted as an intervention in a suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) initiated by the court itself after it took cognizance of a July 10, 2025, news report on the artificial scarcity and inflated prices of stamp papers in Nagpur.
Earlier, a bench headed by Justice Nitin Sambre observed that stamp vendors were "creating artificial scarcity and imposing exorbitant rates" on citizens and legal professionals, despite the supply being regulated by the govt through the Collector of Stamps. The court appointed advocate Rahul Ghuge as amicus curiae to assist in the matter.
The co-operative society noted that it currently holds a temporary licence — issued under a govt resolution dated September 28, 2020 — to sell Rs5, Rs10, and Rs100 stamp papers. However, it has not been allowed to sell the Rs500 denomination, which it said has become essential for several categories of documentation. A request made to the joint district registrar on October 17, 2024, to permit such sales was turned down on October 25.
The matter was listed on Wednesday before the division bench of Justices Anil Kilor and Vrushali Joshi, which adjourned the hearing.
