HC stays LPG dealership allotment in Tirunelveli District

Madurai Bench of Madras High Court has stayed proceedings for the appointment of LPG dealers in Tirunelveli District of Tamil Nadu by three oil marketing companies.
Granting the stay on a petition by a wholesale kerosene dealer in Tirunelveli, Justice T.Raja ordered notice to the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry and to Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, Indian Oil Corporation and Bharat Petroleum.
Petitioner Geethanjali submitted that they had been kerosene dealer since 1963 but in view of growing LPG consumption, dealership of Superior Kerosene Oil - Light Diesel Oil (SKO-LDO) had become unviable of late. Also more subsidies were given to LPG dealers than kerosene dealers.

In view of this, they had made several representations to the oil companies to allot LPG dealership to the SKO/LDO dealers. The Tamil Nadu Government had also recommended allotment of LPG dealership to them on surrendering the kerosene wholesale dealership and the same was pending with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
Meanwhile, the oil corporations had issued the impugned notification/advertisement on September 21, 2013 for LPG dealership allotment for all locations in the state without waiting for the decision of the Ministry on the dealership issue, the petitioner submitted challenging the notification.