The Delhi High Court has decided to hear the plea seeking price fixation of Petrol and Diesel under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

The plea which has been filed by one Pooja Mahajan under Article 226 said that the impugned action of fixation of fuel prices by Oil Manufacturing Companies (OMCs) is totally unlawful, unwarranted and there is no justification on the part of Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) to delegate such kind of powers to Public Sector Companies/OMC to fix the daily price of Petrol and Diesel.

The plea said: “Public Sector Companies/Oil Manufacturing Companies are controlling the prices of Petrol & Diesel and are violating Section 3(1) of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

“Petrol and Diesel are essential commodities and the MoPNG is failing in its duty to discharge its obligation under Section 3(1) and have indirectly given implied consent to the oil companies to increase the prices of petrol and diesel at their own whims and fancies and as a result of this, the OMCs are demanding, charging the highly escalated rate of Petrol and Diesel from the public at large as per their own convenience, business interests as such.”

The matter is likely to come up tomorrow.

—India Legal Bureau