Tripura High Court
Smt. Kanika Debnath vs Indian Oil Corporation Ltd on 20 December, 2018
Equivalent citations: AIR 2019 (NOC) 433 (TRI.), AIRONLINE 2018 TRI 325
Author: Arindam Lodh
Bench: Arindam Lodh
Page 1 of 11
HIGH COURT OF TRIPURA
AGARTALA
WP(C) NO.288 OF 2018
Smt. Kanika Debnath,
W/o.- Sri Sanjit Debnath,
Resident of Vill-Kathalia,
P.O-Kathalia, Sub-Division-Sonamua,
Gram Panchayet-Kathalia,P.S.-Jatrapur
District-Sepahijala,
Pin-799132.
..... Petitioner
Versus
1. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.
(Represented by its Managing Director,
Indian Oil Bhavan, Jung Murg, Bandra,
East Mumbai, Pin-400051)
2. The DGM (LPG-S)
Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.
Silchar Area Office, Assam, (Indane Area Office)
Jagannath Apartment, (1st Floor), Hospital Road
Silchar, Assam 788005.
.... Respondents
For Respondent (s) : Mr. P. Roy Barman, Adv For Respondent(s) : Mr. B.N. Majumder, Adv.
Date of hearing & delivery of Judgment and order :20.12.2018.
Whether fit for reporting : NO HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ARINDAM LODH JUDGEMENT AND ORDER(ORAL) Heard Mr. P. Roy Barman, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner as well as Mr. B.N. Majumder, Page 2 of 11 learned counsel appearing for the respondents-Indian Oil Corporation.
2. The facts in brief:-
In response to an advertisement notified in the daily newspapers of Tripura wherein applications were invited from the eligible candidates for appointment of LPG distributors at Village-Kathalia, within Gram Panchayat Block-Kathalia, District-Sepahijala, the petitioner applied for appointment of LPG distributorship. The said notification contains the eligibility criteria as reproduced here-in-below:-
" a. Applicants should be an Indian Citizens and be a resident of India.
b. Applicant should have passed minimum th 10 Standard examination or equivalent from a recognized Board. However, the criterion of educational qualification is not applicable for applicants belonging to Freedom Fighter(FF) category.
c. Applicant should not less than 21 years and not more than 60 years in age as on the date of publication of the advertisement/Notification. There is no age restriction for applicants applying for location reserved under Freedom Fighter(FF) category.
d. Applicant should not be a family member of any employee of Oil Marketing Companies as on date of Application.
e. Fulfill Multiple Dealership/Distributorship norms, which means the applicant or any other member of „family unit should not hold a Dealership/LPG Distributorship of letter of intent (LOI) for a dealership/LPG distributor of any PSU Oil Marketing Company.
The Multiple Dealership/Distributorship norms will not be applicable to applicants who are existing SKO dealers of OMCs and operating below average allocation of 75KL of SKO per month during the immediate preceding to submit documentary proof of Kerosene allocation issued by the allocating authority of the State Govt./Divisional/Territory/Regional Office of the Oil Marketing Company, as the case may be.
Similarly, the Multiple Dealership/Distributorship norms is not be applicable to NDNE (Non-Domestic Non-Essential) Retailers/LPG Distributors appointed by Page 3 of 11 PSU Oil Marketing Companies for exclusive marketing of NDNE/LPG Cylinders.
The existing kerosene (SKO) dealer of any PSU Oil Marketing Company (OMC), if selected, will surrender their kerosene(SKO) Dealership prior to issuance of letter of appointment.
Similarly, The NDNE retailer ship/Distributorship(s), if selected will have to surrender their NDNE retailer ship(s)/distributorship(s) of any OMC in their name or any member of the family Unit prior to issuance of letter of Appointment of LPG Distributorship.
f. Applicant should be physically and mentally sound to be able to run the business. That is, the applicant should not be totally paralyzed or mentally unsound or who suffers from insanity and is deprived of cognitive faculties.
g. Applicant should neither have been convicted nor charges being framed by any court of law for any criminal offence involving moral turpitude/economic offences.
h. The Applicant should not be a signatory to distributorship/dealership agreement, terminated on account of proven cases of malpractice/adulteration of any oil marketing company/not having resign from sole proprietorship of any dealership/distributorship of any PSU Oil Marketing Company in order to transfer the dealership/distributorship in favour of any of his/her family member(s) as defined in the dealer/LPG distributor selection guidelines."
2.1. The petitioner being found eligible in terms of her application was called for to participate in the draw of lots at a specified place on a specified date. She became successful in the draw of lots. As per norms and in terms of Brochure of respondent-Corporation, a field verification committee was sent to enquire as to whether the information furnished by the writ petitioner in her application to the respondent-Corporation was correct or not. The field verification committee after enquiry found substantial variations and irregularities in the information mentioned in the prescribed application form. The respondent-Corporation also had sought for information from Page 4 of 11 the B.D.O Kathalia to enquire about the genuinity of the information she supplied in her application form and also to verify the Record of Ordinary Residence Register(ROR) of the writ petitioner. On enquiry, the BDO Kathalia Block had intimidated to the respondent-Corporation vide communication dated 27th December, 2017 stating inter alia that the petitioner Smt. Kanika Debnath was not the resident of Kathalia gram panchayat. It was further intimated that the documents of the Records of Ordinary Residence (ROR) submitted by Smt. Kanika Debnath for availing LPG distributorship was obtained by means of misrepresentation which was subsequently cancelled by the competent authority. The communication dated 27.12.2017 is reproduced here in below, for convenience, in extenso:-
" GOVERNMENT OF TRIPURA OFFICE OF THE BLOCK DEVELOPMENT OFFICER KATHALIA R.D. BLOCK, SEPAHIJALA No.F.14(91)BDO/KTL/PANCH/2016-17/8459-60 DATED 27.12.2017 To The AM(CC & LPG-S), Agartala Kunjaban Depot, Aboynagar, Agartala Subject:- Information regarding residence status of Smt. Kanika Debnath, W/O Sanjit Debnath.
Ref:- Your letter No. Nll/IOC/LPG/Kathalia, Dated 11/12/2017 Sir/Madam In reference to the subject cited above, I would like to inform you that the selected LPG distributor for kathalia, Smt. Kanika Debnath W/O Sanjit Debnath is NOT A RESIDENCE of Kathalia Gram Panchayat.
The document of Ordinary Residence (ROR) which was submitted by Smt. Kanika Debnath for availing LPG Page 5 of 11 distributorship has been obtained by means of misrepresentation and subsequently cancelled by Competent Authoirty.
This is for favour of your kind information and necessary action please.
Yours faithfully Sd/-
Block Development Officer Kathalia RD. Block Sepahijala"
2.2. On receipt of this communication dated 27th December, 2017, the respondent-Corporation vide its communication dated 31.01.2018 had sent a regret letter to the petitioner stating inter alia that during field verification they found some variations in the information supplied by the writ petitioner in her application submitted to the Corporation. The said communication dated 31st January, 2018 is as under:-
"Ref:No.IAO/SIL/KATHALIA-304 Date. 31.01.2018 To, Mrs Kanika Debnath, C/O Mr Sanjit Debnath, Vill: South Maheshpur, PO/Block: Kathalia Near Dakshin Maheshpur J.B. School Dist: Sepahijola Tripura, Pin: 799132 Subject: Application for award of LPG Distributorship at Kathalia, District: Sepahijola, Tripura under "OPEN(W)" category Advertised on 30.08.2017; Type of LPG Distributorship : Durgam Kshetriya Vitrak(DKV).
Dear M‟am/Sir, Please refer your application (serial number IOC07513017303102017) for award of above- mentioned LPG Distributorship.
We regret to inform you that upon field verification of the information submitted by you in your application Page 6 of 11 mentioned above, the following variances were observed:
1. The land as mentioned by you in the application bearing Khasra No/Survey No: 363 does not fall within the boundary limit of Kathalia Gram Panchayat.
2. You are not a resident of Kathalia Gram Panchayat.
In view of the above, your candidature is rejected and the amount of Rs.40000/- deposited with the Corporation stands forfeited in line with clause No.11h & 11 i of the advertisement. Thanking you, Yours faithfully For Indian Oil Corporation Limited Sd/- illegible (N. Bhattacharyya) DGM(LPG-S), Silchar Area Office, Assam"
2.3. The cancellation of her candidature prompted the petitioner to approach this Hon‟ble Court to interfere with the impugned order of cancellation dated 31.01.2018 by way of invoking the extra-ordinary jurisdiction of this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.
3. Mr. P. Roy Barman, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner has drawn my attention to the Record of Ordinary Residence dated 28th November, 2017 wherein it was revealed that the writ petitioner Smt. Kanika Debnath was a resident of Kathalia gram panchayat. The learned counsel has also drawn my attention to the sale deed executed on 25th September, 2017. She has made a statement in her writ petition that the land of the said sale deed is situated within the area as Page 7 of 11 prescribed in the advertisement. The learned counsel has also drawn my attention to another Record of Ordinary Residence, wherein, it was stated that the petitioner is a resident of Kathalia, it is issued on 13th July, 2018 (Annexure-9 of the writ petition). He has tried to persuade this Court that in view of this Record of Ordinary Residence, it is amply clear that the writ petitioner is a resident of Kathalia and fulfills all the criteria mentioned in the advertisement and petitioner has not committed any wrong. He further submits that the action of the respondent-Corporation is arbitrary and the order of cancellation of the candidature is liable to be set aside.
4. Per contra, Mr. B.N. Majumder, learned standing counsel appearing for the respondent-Indian Oil Corporation submits that from the very beginning of the application, the role of the petitioner was doubtful and she has committed various irregularities, obtained ROR certificate by way of fraudulent means and does not fulfill the terms and conditions laid down in the advertisement as well as in brochure of the corporation for the appointment of the LPG Distributor. In support of his contention, Mr. Majumder, learned counsel has drawn my attention to the Record of Ordinary Residence of the writ petitioner. Here, it is found that the certificate is an extract of page No. 77, serial No.74 of the book No. 4, wherein, in the Ordinary Residence Register certificate dated 27.11.2017 it is found that it is out of same book No. 4 but of page No. 81 and serial No. 78. So, according to him, Ordinary Residence Page 8 of 11 certificate submitted by the writ petitioner was obtained fraudulently and should not be relied upon. More so, the land in question found in the sale deed is not situated within Kathalia Block.
5. I have noticed that the land belongs to the Mouja Maheshpur. Mr. Majumder, learned counsel has further drawn my attention to the "notice for appointment of LPG Distributor"
appended to the writ petition. Serial No.9 of the said notice relates to Kathalia wherein the location has been mentioned as Kathalia at column No.3; Column No.4 & 5 deals with the names of Gram Panchayat and Block specifying that the location should be under gram panchayat and Block "Kathalia".
Mr. Majumder, learned counsel submits that neither the residence nor the land of the writ petitioner is situated at "Kathalia".
6. Mr. Majumder, learned counsel also pointed out clause- 26 from the brochure of Indian Oil Corporation which reads as under:
"26. FURNISHING OF FALSE INFORMATION a. If any statement made by the applicant in the application or in the documents enclosed therewith or subsequently submitted in pursuance of the application at any stage is found to have been suppressed/misrepresented/incorrect or false affecting eligibility, then the application/candidature is liable to be rejected without assigning any reason.
b. In case the selection of the candidate is rejected after the FVC or after issuance of LOI but before issue of Letter of Appointment, then the amount Page 9 of 11 deposited by the selected candidate before the FVC is conducted i.e., 10% of the applicable security deposit will be forfeited. c. In case the selected candidate has been appointed as a distributor and the allotment is liable to be cancelled, then the distributorship will be terminated along with forfeiture of security deposit remitted by the candidate.
d. In all the above cases, the selected candidate/distributor will have no claim whatsoever against the respective PSU Oil Marketing Company."
7. I have noticed the application of the writ petitioner for her appointment of LPG Distributor. In the prescribed application form, column No.3 deals with furnishing of the particulars of the applicants where her residential address was written as village-South Maheshpur, Post Office-Dakshin Maheshpur, Gram Panchayet-Kathalia. So, it is clear that the petitioner does not belong to the locality of „Kathalia‟. She mentioned in her application that her residence is situated at gram-panchayat Kathalia, but factually it is not correct which is evident from the report of the BDO Kathalia, as stated hereinabove.
8. The Panchayat Secretary has issued a certificate specifying the names of different villages habitation wise which are situated within Kathalia (Annexure- C to the writ petition).
The villages are:-
" Khadhya Khola (khadhya North Para) Saltali Colony (East Bank of Kakri River)
1) Kathalia Madhya Para(East Part) Page 10 of 11
2) Kathalia(East Part)
3) Kamai para, Batla Para
1) Kathalia School Para
2) Kathalia(West Part)
1)Kathalia Madhya Para(WestPart)"‟
9. Noticeably, in the communication dated 2nd Jaunary, 2018, the Deputy Collector and Magistrate, Sonamura, Dhanpur Revenue Circle in reply to some query intimated the competent officer of the respondent-Corporation that the land of the writ petitioner does not fall within the boundary limitation of Kathalia gram panchayat. It is further clarified that as per the report of the TDR Khatalia, the land in question is outside the boundary of Kathalia Gram Panchayat and it is under South Maheshpur gram panchayet. So, here also I find misrepresentation of facts in the application which was submitted by the writ-petitioner for appointing of LPG Distributor for the location "Kathalia".
10. This Court, at the outset, was reluctant to entertain this writ petition on the ground of its limited power to decide the disputed question of facts which are emanated from the statement of the writ petitioner. However, to avoid multiplicity of the judicial proceedings, I have dealt with the submission of the learned counsels, examined the records appended to the writ petition as well as the counter affidavit. According to me, the writ petitioner has committed various irregularities and there are inconsistencies in the facts she furnished in her Page 11 of 11 application which are discussed in details in the preceding paragraphs.
11. In my considered view, the writ petitioner has not approached this Court with clean hands and as such, the impugned order of cancellation of her candidature dated 31.01.2018 does not call for interference.
12. Accordingly, the writ petition being devoid of merit, is dismissed
13. However, there shall be no order of costs.
14. The interim order granted on 19.03.2018 stands vacated.
JUDGE Suhanjit