Diesel price: Oil firms file appeal against single judge order

Single judge's order to sell diesel to KSRTC at price on a par with retail outlets rates

Oil marketing companies on Monday filed appeals before a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court against a single judge's interim directive to sell high-speed diesel (HSD) to the KSRTC at a price on a par with the retail outlets rates

In their appeals, the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and other companies contended that the single judge ought not to have exercised its jurisdiction under Article 226 as it was settled law that no interim order should be passed in such policy matters. In fact, there was no escape for judicial review of the price fixed for a commodity.

Therefore, the single judge ought not to have fixed the price at which a commodity, whether essential or otherwise, should be supplied under a commercial contract. Besides, as the writ petition involved a contractual dispute between the parties, the single judge should have found that the writ petition was not maintainable in view of the alternative remedy of arbitration under the agreement.

In fact, it was the KSRTC which had voluntarily chosen to get supplies of HSD in bulk from the oil companies by entering into separate agreements. Therefore, it could not now seek to claim parity with retail price.

The sinlge judge passed the interim order on a KSRTC’s petition challenging the decision of oil marketing firms to demand higher price for HSD being sold to the corporation.