JAYANT Vs. INDIAN OIL CORPORATION LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Aggrieved by the communication dtd. 27/11/2019 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 category, advertised on 25/11/2018. The ground of ineligibility, as evident from the impugned communication, is that as on 24/12/2018, i.e., the last date for submission of applications in furtherance of the advertisement dtd. 25/11/2018 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 29/6/2019.

(2.) Appearing in support of the writ petition, Mr. Gaikwad, learned advocate submitted that although the lease deed was registered on 29/6/2019, an agreement between the lessor and the lessee (the petitioner) for lease of the subject land was notarized on 20/12/2018 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 Sec. 47 of the Registration Act, 1908 (hereafter "the Act of 1908"), the date of the registration must relate back to 20/12/2018. Based on these contentions, Mr. Gaikwad prays for quashing of the communication dtd. 27/11/2019 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.) Per contra, Mr. Bhandari, learned advocate for the respondents, contends that in terms of the advertisement dtd. 25/11/2018 read with the brochure published by IOCL for selection of dealers for regular and rural retail outlets dtd. 24/11/2018, 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:-