Compliance with lease deed requirements in dealer selection guidelines is mandatory, rendering any submission lacking full execution invalid.

ORDER :

Amit Seth, J.

1.The petitioner has filed the instant writ petition claiming following reliefs :-

"To instruct the Respondent of serial no-1 Hindustan petroleum corporation Itd. Gwalior, to acknowledge and accept the candidature of petitioner rejected illegally,

*Mandamus, commanding the Respondents to not to issue any Letter of Intent, or initiate any proceedings in line with the selection of the concerned location in favour of any other person except the petitioner .

*That any other relief/direction/order as deemed fit, and proper looking to the present facts and circumstances the case."

2. The facts leading to filing of the present writ petition are that an advertisement dated 28/06/2023 was issued by the respondents for allotment of new retail outlet (Petrol Pump) dealership for various location in the State of M.P. including "within 3 km for police station Sesaipura on Shivpuri Sheopur Road (SH 51-A) Dist. Sheopur." The last date for submission of application form was 17/10/2023. The petitioner submitted her application form in prescribed format on 16/10/2023 for location "within 3 km for police station Sesaipura on Shivpuri Sheopur Road (SH 51-A) District Sheopur" and was provisionally selected for allotment of dealership in question through draw of lots. However, at the stage of verification of documents, vide order dated 19/02/2024, the petitioner was informed as regards her candidature being ineligible and rejection of her candidature on the ground that lease deed dated 25/09/2023 bearing registration No. MP402682023A12401179 pertaining to the land at survey No. 336 of village Sesaipura offered by the petitioner in her application for setting up of the retail outlet is not executed by all co-owners of the land . Hence, lease deed is invalid as per dealer selection brochure. However, her candidature may get considered for selection along with (Group 3) applicants as per guidelines. By the impugned order dated 19/02/2024, the petitioner was also informed that against the rejection of her candidature as mentioned above, she may make representation by 29/02/2024 and pursuant thereto representation dated 25/02/2024 was submitted by the petitioner citing reasons for non-execution of the lease deed submitted by one of the co-owner on the ground that application pertaining to partition of the land at the relevant time was pending before the Tehsildar concerned, who thereafter has passed the order of partition and accordingly, petitioner later on submitted consent affidavit of one of the co-owner along with her representation with a request for reconsideration of her candidature. The representation submitted by the petitioner came to be rejected by the respondent No. 1 vide order dated 27/02/2024 stating therein that the defect in the lease deed in question submitted by the petitioner was not falling under the category of rectifiable deficiency and accordingly representation of the petitioner was rejected.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that rejection of her candidature vide order dated 19/02/2024 and further rejection of her representation vide order dated 27/02/2024 is per-se arbitrary and illegal. There has been bonafide error on the part of the petitioner in submitting lease deed un-executed by one of the owner, for which, no malafide could be attributable to her. Therefore, in all fairness, the consent affidavit of one of the co-owner of the land submitted by the petitioner at the later point of time ought to have bee