Supreme Court dismisses plea against rising Fuel prices

On Tuesday, the Apex Court dismissed a PIL seeking deregulation of petrol & diesel prices & to pass on to the public, the benefits of fall in international crude oil rates.

The Public Interest Litigation filed by a Kerala-based Lawyer, Shaji J Kodankandath, said that oil marketing companies (OMCs), which are directly under the operational control of the Union Govt, were increasing petrol & diesel prices on a daily basis even though international crude oil prices have been at an all-time low since April.

“Do you seriously want to argue this? If you do, we will impose costs,” said Justice Rohinton Nariman who was heading the bench.

The petitioner’s lawyer chose not to pursue the case & accepted that the matter fell within the ambit of the government’s policy decision.

The petitioner had highlighted that the current price of crude oil was hovering at around Rs 38 per barrel & the total cost of manufacturing & selling of petrol & diesel would be around Rs 30 per litre.

Despite that, petrol & diesel prices are over Rs 80, which is over 150% more than the manufacturing cost, the plea said.

The plea added that “The price of diesel, which is traditionally lower than petrol, has increased. Diesel costs more than petrol in some cities for the first time in recent history".

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