ORDER
M.M. Das, J.
1. The petitioner in the present writ petition challenges the order dated 10.6.2003 passed by the Collector, Jajpur in Misc. Case No. 7 of 2003 under Annexure-13 to the writ petition.
2. The facts as revealed in the writ petition leading to the present case are that the petitioner was appointed as a distributor of LPG at Jajpur Town by the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (in short 'HPC Ltd.'). He has applied for grant of licence for possession of cylinder under the Indian Explosives Act, 1884 and the same was obtained and also purchased a land and made huge investment by taking land from different sources. After receiving the letter of appointment from the Regional Manager, HPC Ltd. and on execution of the required agreement, the petitioner commenced his business at Jajpur Town. It is alleged that before the petitioner was appointed as LPG distributor for Jajpur Town, the opp. party No. 6-M/s. Devi Gas, a Proprietor concern which is a distributor of LPG under Bharat Gas for Jajpur Road, was permitted to open an extension counter in Jajpur Town by the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (in short 'BPC Ltd.') under the letter dated 19.5.1993 annexed as Annexure-3 to the writ petition. According tp the petitioner, after the petitioner commenced his distributorship in Jajpur Town, the said M/s. Devi Gas-opp. party No. 6 was required to close down its extension counter and hand over the existing customers of Jajpur Town to the present petitioner. The said M/s. Devi Gas having not done so, the Regional Manager, HPC Ltd. intimated the Collector-cum-District Magistrate, Jajpur to issue suitable instruction to the said M/s. Devi Gas to comply with the guidelines and transfer the customers to the present petitioner. The Government of India in its Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas by letter dated 17.9.2001 intimated the Chairman of Petroleum Companies directing them to ensure that all the extension counters which are operating in the trading areas of newly commissioned LPG distributorship must be closed down immediately, irrespective of the fact that the same have been opened with the concurrence of the management of the concerned companies. It was further directed that on such closure of the extension counters, the customers who were being served by such counters should be transferred immediately to the newly commissioned distributorship of the respective areas (Annexure-5). By letter dated 20.12.2002, the Civil Supplies Officer, Jajpur also passed an order directing opp. party No. 6 to close down the extension counter. The petitioner alleges that the said M/s. Devi Gas by setting up some persons filed W.P.(C) No. 685 of 2003 before this Court alleging that even though the petitioners in the said writ petition are consumers of LP Gas under the BPC Ltd. at Jajpur Town but M/s. Devi Gas is refusing to supply such Gas to them and is asking them to get their consumer cards transferred to M/s. Ganapati Gas (present petitioner) which is a new distributor of LP Gas.
3. This Court disposed of the said writ petition by an innocuous order dated 24.4.2003 directing the Collector-cum-District Magistrate, Jajpur to dispose of the representation dated 30.12.2004 of the petitioners in the said writ petition, if the said representation has not yet been disposed of.
4. On receiving the said order of this Court, the Collector-cum-District Magistrate, Jajpur registered Misc. Case No. 7 of 2003 and after hearing the parties, by an elaborate order dated 10.6.2003, which has been annexed as Annexure-13 to the writ petition, directed as follows:
xxx xxx xxxKeeping all the factors in view, I do hereby order that the BPCL proprietor Devi Gas is to retain only 600 consumers in Jajpur town and its periphery and transfer the remaining around 1000 consumers to Ganapati Gas, the local distributor of HPCL within a period of one month. The petitioners who have approached the Hon'ble High Court are allowed to remain as Consumers of the Devi Gas in addition to other consumers limiting to 600.
Being aggrieved by the said order dated 10.6.2003 of the Collector, Jajpur, the present petitioner has approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for appropriate relief.
5. On perusal of the decision/direction of the Government of India in its Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas as disclosed in Annexure-5 to the writ petition, we find that as per the policy of the Government of India, wherever new LPG distributorship is opened, extension counters functioning in the said areas are required to be closed down and the consumers are to be transferred to the newly opened distributorship.
6. In view of the above, as the petitioner has been appointed as a distributor of LPG for Jajpur Town, the extension counter opened by opp. party No. 6-M/s. Devi Gas should have been closed by now by transferring the consumers to get their service and supply of LPG from the petitioner. We, therefore, find that the direction of the Collector, Jajpur given in his order dated 10.6.2003 under Annexure-13 to the writ petition, as quoted above, is not in conformity with the policy decision of the Government of India. We, therefore, quash the order dated 10.6.2003 under Annexure-13 and direct the Collector, Jajpur-opp. party No. 1 to take effective steps so as to transfer the consumers availing their service of supply of LP Gas from opp. party No. 6-M/s. Devi Gas to the petitioner's distributorship and further to take effective steps, so that opp. party No. 6-M/s. Devi Gas stops its operation for the area for which the petitioner has been appointed as a distributor of LPG. We further direct that the opp. party No. 2-HPC Ltd. to see that sufficient Gas Cylinders are allotted to the petitioner for meeting the demand of all the consumers of Jajpur Town.
7. The writ petition is, accordingly, allowed.
S.B. Roy, C.J.
8. I agree.