LUHETA URJA KENDRA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Both the aforesaid writ petitions, being connected with each other, have been heard analogously and are being decided by this common judgment, which will have binding effect in both the matters.

(2.) So far as Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 54670 of 2009 (hereinafter in short called as the "first writ petition') is concerned, it was filed on 14th October, 2009 with the prayer to quash the advertisement dated 23rd June, 2009 issued by the Respondent-Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (hereinafter in short called as the "Corporation") for grant of retail outlet dealership insofar as it relates to the place mentioned at Serial No. 42 of such advertisement, and also prayed for other consequential reliefs in connection thereto. In such writ petition, on 21st October, 2009 an interim order was passed by a Division Bench of this Court to the extent that the impugned advertisement, as far as Item No. 42 is concerned, shall remain stayed and the Respondents shall not finalize the dealership with any party of Item No. 42 mentioned in the advertisement. The Petitioners of the first writ petition were happy with such interim order.

(3.) The moot point of argument of the Petitioners in the first writ petition is that as per the policy decision of the Union of India, no retail outlet should be opened within a radius of 5 kilometres from an existing outlet unless the average combined thruput of the area as a whole exceeds 80 Kilolitres per month. According to the recording of reason in the interim order, the Court held that only in the month of January and March, 2008 the sale was more than 80 kilolitres of diesel oil and the average sale of the entire year was 58.5 kilolitres, which is less than 80 Kilolitres fixed in the policy decision by the Union of India. The Court further recorded that since the Respondents are acting contrary to the norms fixed by the Union of India, the Petitioners are entitled for interim order.