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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GAUHATI, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH
Devashis Baruah, J.
Mrs. Nurjahan Khatun W/o Late Samial Hussain – Petitioner
Versus
The Union of India, Represented By The Secretary, Petroleum And Natural Gas – Respondent
WP(C)/5267 of 2021
Decided On : 24-08-2023
Selection of dealers for regular and rural retail - Eligibility criteria - Challenged decision - Whether there was any legal representative who would be entitled to land taking into account that devolving of right over the land of husband of the petitioner would be automatic upon the demise of husband of petitioner - Learned counsel for petitioner submitted that the husband of petitioner, at the time of his death, had left behind the petitioner as well a son and a daughter. Para 14
Finding of Court : Court has also perused the guidelines, details of which have been referred to hereinabove wherein it clearly mandates that if land belongs to applicant with members of family or owned exclusively by the family member(s), consent letter in the form of affidavit from members of the family in Appendix-III A was required to be submitted at the time of submission of the application - Court is of opinion that there was no illegality in communication dated whereby candidature of the petitioner under Group-1 was rejected/found ineligible with an observation that candidature of the petitioner would be considered for selection along with Group-3 applicants as per guidelines.
Result : Writ petition dismissed
JUDGMENT :
The instant writ petition has been filed by the petitioner challenging the decision of the respondent No.3 contained in the letter dated 04.03.2020 whereby it was mentioned that the land documents submitted by the petitioner were not valid for considering the offered land under Group-1 and the petitioner was informed that the candidature of the petitioner would be considered for selection along with Group-3 applicants as per the guidelines. The petitioner had also by way of the instant writ petition sought for a writ of mandamus upon the respondent Nos.2 & 3 to reconsider the case of the petitioner for Group-1.
2. Before dealing with the facts of the case, this Court finds it relevant to take note of that there is a Brochure for selection of dealers for regular and rural retail outlets dated 24.11.2018. The said Brochure contains various Guidelines for selection of dealers for regular and rural retail outlets through Draw of Lots/Bidding Process.
3. In the said Guidelines, Clause 4 stipulates the eligibility criteria for individual applicant-proprietorship/partnership. Sub-Clause (v) of Clause 4 classifies three groups based on the land offered or land not offered by them in the application form. In Group-1, the applicants have been clubbed together who have suitable piece of land in the advertised location/area either by way of ownership/long term lease for a period of minimum 19 years 11 months or as advertised by the OMC. In Group 2, those applicants have been clubbed who have firm offer for a suitable piece of land for purchase or long term lease for a period of minimum 19 years 11 months or as advertised by the OMC. In Group-3, those applicants are clubbed who have not offered land in the application. It is further mentioned in Sub-Clause (v) of Clause 4 that applications of applicants under Group-3 would be processed/advised to offer land only in case no eligible applicant is found or no applicant get selected under Group 1 & 2. It is further mentioned that in case, land offered by all the applicants under Group 1 and Group 2 is found not suitable/not meeting requirements, then those applicants under Group 1 and Group 2 along with applicants under Group 3 (who did not offer land along with application) would be advised by the OMC to provide suitable land in the advertised location/stretch, within a period of 3 months from the date of issuance of intimation letter to them through SMS/e-mail. It is further stipulated that in case the applicants fail to provide suitable land within the prescribed period or the land provided is found not meeting the laid down criteria, the application would be rejected.
4. Further to that, there are various other conditions with respect to offering of the land. Amongst the various conditions, Condition (d) stipulates that the applicants under Group-1 should have documents to establish ownership of land offered for the dealership as on date of application, such as Khasra/Khatauni or any equivalent Revenue document or certificate from Revenue Official confirming status of the ownership of the land or registered Sale Deed/registered Gift Deed or registered Lease Deed for a minimum period of 19 years and 11 months (as advertised by respective Oil Company) or any other type of ownership/transfer deed document or lease agreement or firm allotment letter issued by Government /Semi Government bodies.
5. The Condition (e) is very relevant for the purpose of the instant case which stipulates that the land owned by the family member(s) will also be considered as belonging to the Applicant (Group-1) subject to producing the consent letter in the form of affidavit (Appendix III A) from the concerned family member(s).
6. In Condition (j), there is a detailed Table mentioned stipulating the various conditions of ownership for defining owned/firm offer. At Serial No.2 of the said Table in respect of self members of family or owned exclusively by family member(s), the document which is required to be su
Point of Law : Candidature of petitioner under Group-1 was rejected/found ineligible with an observation that candidature of the petitioner would be considered for selection along with Group-3 applic....
The conformity letter from an advocate plays a crucial role in determining the eligibility of the offered land and the applicant's title to it, and the rejection based solely on the conformity letter....
The court upheld the rejection of the petitioner's application for a retail outlet dealership due to failure to meet land suitability criteria as per the Brochure guidelines.
Eligibility for dealership applications must strictly adhere to stipulated guidelines regarding land ownership and lease terms.
Applicants must meet the eligibility criteria for the respective groups and submit necessary documents as per the requirement of the group applied for.
The importance of the offered land and the mode of selection by draw of lots among the categorized groups as per the brochure for selection of dealers of the respondent Corporation.
Point of Law : All certificates/documents required for meeting specific eligibility criteria should be in possession of the applicant and valid as on date of application.
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