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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GAUHATI
MANISH CHOUDHURY, J.
Moktadur Rahman - Petitioner
Versus
Union of India and Others - Respondent
WP(C) Nos. 8904 and 8440 of 2018
Decided on : 05-02-2021
LPG Distributorship - Eligibility Criteria - Brochure on Unified Selection Guidelines - Clause 1(w), Clause 8 - The court discussed the eligibility criteria for distributorship of LPG as per the Brochure on Unified Selection Guidelines, emphasizing the requirement of ownership or registered lease deed for a minimum of 15 years for the plot of land offered for godown/showroom. The court highlighted the importance of adhering to the specified eligibility criteria and the consequences of non-compliance, as evidenced by the rejection of the petitioner's candidature and forfeiture of the application fee.
Fact of the Case:
The petitioner sought to set aside the rejection of his application for LPG distributorship due to non-fulfilment of eligibility criteria, and the forfeiture of the application fee. The court analyzed the petitioner's submission of an unregistered lease deed and subsequent rejection by the respondent-BPCL authorities.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the petitioner did not meet the eligibility criteria as he did not possess a registered lease deed for the proposed plot of land on the last date of submission of the application. The court also set aside the decision to forfeit the application fee, citing lack of due diligence on the part of the respondent-authorities.
Issues: The main issue revolved around the petitioner's compliance with the eligibility criteria for LPG distributorship, and the validity of the decision to reject his candidature and forfeit the application fee.
Ratio Decidendi: The court emphasized the importance of adhering to the specified eligibility criteria, particularly the requirement of a registered lease deed for the plot of land offered for godown/showroom, and upheld the rejection of the petitioner's candidature. However, the court set aside the decision to forfeit the application fee due to lack of due diligence on the part of the respondent-authorities.
Final Decision: The court disposed of the writ petition, upholding the rejection of the petitioner's candidature for LPG distributorship and directing the return of the forfeited amount of Rs. 40,000 to the petitioner.
JUDGMENT :
1. The writ petition under article 226 of the Constitution of India is preferred by the writ petitioner for setting aside and quashing of a letter dated 13.11.2018 issued by the respondent No. 3, i.e., the Territory Manager (LPG), North East LPG Territory, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited whereby the application of the petitioner offered for distributorship of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for the subject location, Pipulbari Part-I, District - South Salmara - Mankachar, Assam was rejected and for a direction to the respondent-authorities in Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited to accept the application of the writ petitioner for the aforementioned subject location.
2. The genesis behind the writ petition is an advertisement published jointly by three Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies, viz., Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (‘IOCL’), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (‘BPCL’) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (‘HPCL’) for selection of distributors of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (‘LPG’) in 93 locations in different districts of the State of Assam.
3. By the said advertisement published in the daily newspaper, “Asomiya Pratidin”, in its issue dated 25.5.2018, the Public Sector Oil Companies, viz., Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (‘IOCL’), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (‘BPCL’) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (‘HPCL’) invited applications on-line from interested candidates for selection of distributors of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in 93 locations in different districts of the State of Assam. The last date of submission of on-line application was 25.6.2018.
3. The advertisement, inter alia, laid down the eligible criteria for distributorship of LPG. The applicants were further requested to go through the related Brochure carefully before filling up the applications, which was available in the website www.lpgvitarakchayan.in. The eligibility criteria were mentioned in detail in ‘the Brochure on Unified Guidelines for Selection of LPG Distributors’ (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Brochure on Unified Selection Guidelines’) for Sheheri Vitrak, Rurban Vitrak, Gramin Vitrak and Durgam Kshetriya Vitrak. The said Unified Guidelines for Selection of LPG Distributors were made effective from June, 2017.
3.2 Clause 1 of the Brochure on Unified Selection Guidelines has provided the definitions of different terms. For the purpose of the present writ petition, clause 1(w) is of relevance, which reads as follows
(a) Ownership title of the property or
(b) Registered lease deed having minimum 15 years of valid lease period commencing on any day from the date of advertisement up to the last date of submission of application as specified either in the advertisement or corrigendum (if any).
Additionally, applicants having registered lease deed commencing on any date prior to the date of advertisement will also be considered provided the lease is valid for a minimum period of 15 years from the date of advertisement. The applicant should have ownership as defined under the term ‘own’ above in the name of the applicant/member of “Family Unit” (as defined in multiple dealership/distributorship norm of eligibility criteria)/parents (nuclides Step Father/Step Mother), grandparents (both maternal and paternal), Brother/Sister (including Step Brother and Step Sister), Son/Daughter (includes Step Son/Step daughter), Son-in-law/Daughter-in-law; of the applicant or the spouse (in case of married daughter) as on the last date for submission of application as specified in the advertisement or corrigendum (if any). In case of ownership/co-ownership by family member(s) as given above, consent in the form of a declaration from the family member(s) will be required.
In case the share of land in the jointly owned property by the applicant/member of ‘Family Unit’ (as defined in multiple dea
Adherence to specified eligibility criteria, particularly the requirement of a registered lease deed for the plot of land offered for LPG distributorship, is crucial for consideration of candidature.
The applicant must fulfill the eligibility criteria at the time of application, and decisions regarding forfeiture must be justified and not arbitrary.
The main legal point established in the judgment is the significance of meeting the eligibility criteria, particularly the requirement of ownership or registered lease deed for the plot of land offer....
Section 105 of Transfer of Property Act, 1882 read with Section 17(1)(d) and Section 49 of Registration Act, 1908 which specifically mandates that a lease deed for a period exceeding one year is comp....
The rejection of an LPG distributorship application is valid if eligibility criteria related to land ownership, as per selection guidelines, are not met, and principles of natural justice are not vio....
The court established that compliance with specific eligibility criteria, including land ownership and dimensions, is essential for the approval of LPG distributorship applications, and that subseque....
Point of Law : Article 14 of the Constitution of India envisages only positive equality and it does not embrace any concept of negative equality.
Eligibility criteria for distributorship must be met by the application deadline; courts cannot relax these conditions post-factum.
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