‘It is not for the court to decide at what price to sell the diesel’
‘It is not for the court to decide at what price to sell the diesel’
A division bench of the Kerala High Court on Friday quashed a single judge’s direction to public sector oil marketing companies to sell high-speed diesel to the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) at retail price, instead of charging higher price. be done. Wholesale consumer.
A division bench of Justice CS Das and Justice Basant Balaji, while admitting the appeals filed by the three public sector oil companies, observed that the interim order of the single judge was not sustainable in law and said that it was not the function or authority of the court to decide . The optimum or competitive price at which diesel should be sold to KSRTC.
The court also pointed out that the Supreme Court, in 2017 while dismissing a petition against withdrawal of subsidy for diesel by KSRTC, held that the subsidy cannot be claimed as a right.
‘Autonomy given to firms’
The court said the Supreme Court order had indicated that the administered pricing mechanism had been dispensed with and the price of diesel was controlled in a phased manner. Later, oil companies were given full autonomy to decide the price.
The Bench noted that despite the Supreme Court order, the petitioner continued to purchase petroleum products from oil companies as bulk buyers at the prices fixed by the companies. The petitioner, of his free will and will, had renewed his contract with the oil companies for supply of diesel not once but twice on the same terms and conditions. Thus, it was clear that the petitioner was fully aware that the determination of the price of petroleum products was within the jurisdiction of the companies only.
‘Pleasant profit’
The court also noted that the petitioner had not complained about the pricing after the Supreme Court order. Instead, he had enjoyed the benefits under the contract, especially the credit facility. Right now the petitioner was crying when the price of diesel sold to the wholesale consumers exceeded the price of the retail customers.
The court accepted the contention of the oil companies that wholesale buyers fall in a separate category and cannot be treated at par with retail customers. The counsel for the companies also submitted that petroleum products were supplied to the petitioner at their doorstep, with credit facilities and other benefits as envisaged in the contract.