Advocates:
['GAIKWAD ANIL M', 'NO CAVEAT', '', 'BHANDARI ANAND P']

1 WP / 2618 / 2020

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY

BENCH AT AURANGABAD

WRIT PETITION NO. 2618 OF 2020

Jayant S/o Shahuraj Sonawane,

Age – 48 years, Occu. Agril & Business,

R/o. Sonawane Bunglow,

Near Kamdar Petrol Pump,

Main Road, Latur

... Petitioner

VERSUS

1. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.,

Registered Office Indian Oil Bhavan,

G-9 All Yavarjung Marg,

Bandra (E), Mumbai – 51

2. The Deputy General Manager,

Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.,

Pune Divisional Office,

2^nd Floor, BNSL Telephone Exchange

Building Near GST Office,

Airport Road, Yerwada, Pune – 411 006.

... Respondents

...

Mr Anil M. Gaikwad, Advocate for petitioner

Mr A.P. Bhandari, Advocate for respondents

...

CORAM : DIPANKAR DATTA, CJ

AND

S.S. SHINDE, J.

DATE : AUGUST 27, 2021

PC [Dipankar Datta, CJ.]:

1.

Aggrieved by the communication dated 27^th November, 2019

issued by the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (hereafter <IOCL=), the

petitioner has invoked the writ jurisdiction of this Court. By the

impugned communication, the petitioner was informed of his

ineligibility to be selected for award of retail outlet dealership, at

village Balsur, taluka Omerga in the district of Osmanabad under open

2 WP / 2618 / 2020

category, advertised on 25^th November, 2018. The ground of

ineligibility, as evident from the impugned communication, is that as

on 24^th December, 2018, i.e., the last date for submission of

applications in furtherance of the advertisement dated 25^th November,

2018 issued by IOCL, the lease deed for the land proposed by the

petitioner for the outlet had not been registered. The registration,

according to the parties, was effected not before 29^th June, 2019.

2.

Appearing in support of the writ petition, Mr. Gaikwad, learned

advocate submitted that although the lease deed was registered on

29^th June, 2019, an agreement between the lessor and the lessee (the

petitioner) for lease of the subject land was notarized on 20^th

December, 2018 and that such notarized lease agreement, submitted

along with the application for dealership, ought to have been treated

as sufficient compliance of the terms of the advertisement. It was

next submitted, in the alternative, that having regard to the

provisions of section 47 of the Registration Act, 1908 (hereafter <the

Act of 1908=), the date of the registration must relate back to 20^th

December, 2018. Based on these contentions, Mr. Gaikwad prays for

quashing of the communication dated 27^th November, 2019 together

with directions on the IOCL to declare the petitioner as eligible and to

take further steps for award of the retail outlet dealership in favour

of the petitioner having regard to the petitioner emerging successful

at the draw of lots earlier conducted.

3 WP / 2618 / 2020

3.

Per contra, Mr. Bhandari, learned advocate for the respondents,

contends that in terms of the advertisement dated 25^th November,

2018 read with the brochure published by IOCL for selection of

dealers for regular and rural retail outlets dated 24^th November, 2018,

the petitioner was rightly declared ineligible. He refers to clause (a)

under <Note 1= appearing under the caption <Land (Applicable to

all categories)= (bold in original). Clause (a) defining <own= reads

as follows :-

<a. <Own’ means having ownership by way of

Registered Sale deed, Registered Gift deed, etc. or

title of the property or registered long lease (as per

individual OMC norms) in the name of applicant /

family member/s as defined in 4(v)-e above.=

(emphas