Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday issued notices to federal government and others over the gas price hike and ordered them to submit their replies by October 18, 2018. A division bench headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar issued the notices after Sindh CNG Petroleum & Dealers Association moved the court seeking orders to declare the notification of Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) for increase in gas prices null and void as according to it the increase is without any lawful ground.
Petition made federal government through Secretary Petroleum & Natural Resources, Ogra, Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) and others respondents. The court directed the federal government, Ogra and others to furnish their replies in the petition by October 18 while issuing the notices after bench asked the petitioner how this increase in gas prices would affect the association.
Justice Mazhar said that common man would feel the burden of this price hike in gas when Barrister Mohsin Shahwani, counsel for the petitioner said that increase in gas prices would trigger growth in the prices of others items. The petitioner submitted that Ogra issued the notification in utter violation of Ordinance 2002 and the Tariff Rules dated 4th October, 2018, thereby increasing the sale price of the natural gas for the CNG Sector to Rs 980/- per MMBTU with retrospective effect from 27th September, 2018.
It is astonishing to note that the notified sale price i e Rs 980 per MMBTU is even higher than the sale price sought by the petitioner i e SSGCL and also higher than the prescribed price determined by the Ogra in its decision dated 21-06-2018, the petition stated.
The petition submitted that the sale price could not exceed the prescribed price determined by the Ogra vide its decision dated 21.06.2018, thus the advice of the Federal Government to notify the gas sale price of CNG Sector to Rs 980/- per MMBTU is illegal, arbitrary, unjust, unsustainable and without lawful authority.
The petition noted that Ogra is an independent authority constituted under the Ordinance, 2002, having final determining authority, on the basis of requisite expertise, knowledge and skill with regard to oil and gas and is not at all bound by the advice of the federal government, which is only entitled to issue policy guidelines with regard to the gas sale price and Ogra by law is only required to consider such policy guidelines while notifying the gas sale price.
The petitioner pleaded that notification dated 04-10-2018 is ultra vires to the Section 8 of the Ordinance 2002, the Tariff Rules and also in violation of Article 4, 18, 24 and 37 of the Constitution and prayed that it should be struck down after it has been allegedly found in violation of Section 24-A of the General Clauses Act 1897.
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