Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 30: The High Court has upheld the Government decision with regard to distribution of essential commodities to the consumers by superseding all previous orders in this regard.
Dismissing a batch of petition filed by the fair price shop dealers, who have been allotted fair price shops primarily in terms of Government of J&K’s order No.127-FCS&CA of 2016 dated 04.08.2016, the division bench of Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal upheld the SO. 41 dated 19.01.2023 issued by the FCS&CA Department thereby superseding all previous orders issued on that behalf.
The fair price shop dealers were aggrieved by S.O. 41 dated 19.01.2023 to the effect of reducing their business and renewal fee of Rs. 1,000/- after every five years which they pleaded cannot be imposed on them. Their grievance was also that SO 41 prescribes the maximum age of a fair price shop dealer as 65 years, whereas no such restriction in respect of the age was earlier provided in any of the orders in respect of the allotment of fair price shops.
They have mainly banked upon the order dated 127-FCS&CA of 2016 dated 04.08.2016 to assail SO 41 on the premise that it has the propensity to reduce the ration tickets to 1,500 souls or 200 families in rural areas and not more than 2,000 souls or less than 300 families in urban areas, whereas in terms order No. 127-FCS&CA of 2016 dated 04.08.2016, the minimum ration tickets were fixed as 250 with upper limit of 499 ration tickets.
The court said that the National Food Security Act, 2013 was promulgated by the Government of India and applied in the erstwhile State of J&K as well, with the object of providing food and nutritional security and ensuring access to adequate quantity of quality food at affordable prices to people to live a life of dignity and the objective is being achieved through opening of new fair price shops and strengthening the network of already existing fair price shops.
“Equally true is that the fair price shop system is also contributing to the generation of employment, though the same has never been the main object of the Targeted Public Distribution System, but incidental thereto. Respondents have been categoric in their stand that the sole purpose of SO 41 dated 19.01.2023 issued in terms of Order of 2015 is to ensure supplies of essential commodities and their availability as well”, the court said.
The court further added that the SO 41 has been issued by the respondents in public interest and when the public interest competes against the individual rights of some citizens and when the complaint is made by them in respect of the violation of the doctrines of ‘legitimate expectation’ and ‘promissory estoppel’, then the interest of public at large steal a march on individual interest of the few citizens.
“In terms of clause 20(2) of SO 41, a fair price shop in urban areas cannot have more than 2000 souls and less than 300 ration cards and in rural areas, the ceiling is 1500 souls and less than 200 ration cards. A proviso appended to said clause provides that the Director FCS&CA concerned has the power to adjust minimum up to 50 ration cards or 200 souls on either side, if the situation so warrants or he may rationalize the number of ration cards equally between two panchayats/municipal wards/ULBs”, read the judgment.
The court on renewal of license under SO 41 said the license is to be renewed subject to satisfactory performance of the licensee, to be certified by the Tehsil Supply Officer or the Area Inspector concerned. The purpose of renewal is to ensure that the licensee performs satisfactorily, meaning thereby that he adheres to the guidelines framed by the Government to provide smooth supply of food grains to the ration card holders.
With regard to the age limit as prescribed in the SO 41, the court said that this is true that distribution of food grains requires physical strength as well. Under normal circumstances, when a person reaches 65 years of age, it becomes a little difficult to perform activities that require much physical labour.
“A Government employee also retires at the age of 60 years. SO 41 prescribing the maximum age of 65 years for a fair price shop dealer cannot be termed as unreasonable, particularly when the provision has been made in Clause 23 of SO 41 regarding transfer of license in favour of the dependent family member of fair price shop dealer who has attained the age of 65 years. SO 41 fixing age of 65 years as maximum age of fair price shop dealer cannot be termed as unreasonable or arbitrary”, read the judgment.
After having perused SO 41, the bench said it has no hesitation in observing that it is a complete Code in itself which not only deals with the duties and responsibility of ration card holders but also rights and liabilities of the fair price shop dealer.
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