Observing that LPG distributorship was not a welfare or poverty alleviation scheme to provide 5% reservation for persons with benchmark disabilities as per Section 37 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, the High Court of Karnataka has lifted the stay on the process of awarding 238 LPG distributorships by three State-owned oil companies.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice S. Sunil Dutt Yadav passed the order while disposing of a PIL petition filed by the Karnataka Rajya Vikalachetanara Rakshana Samiti. The forum had questioned oil companies for not providing 5% reservation to persons with benchmark disabilities in its August 2017 notification inviting applications for distributorship.
It was contended by the petitioner that LPG distributorship is a developmental and poverty alleviation scheme, requiring reservation of 5% to disabled persons. The oil companies β Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum, and Bharat Petroleum β had reserved six distributorships to persons with disabilities, which the petitioner said was less than 3% of the total number. βThe supply chain by way of LPG distributorship, no doubt, is of welfare measures, where on the one hand employment and earning opportunities are created and on the other, LPG reaches even BPL families. However, if any element of poverty alleviation is at all to be seen in such an award of distributorship, that only refers to the consumers, not the distributors,β the Bench observed, pointing out that LPG distributorship was essentially a matter of commercial contract.
However, the Bench left it open for the petitioners to approach the authorities with a request to provide concession in application fee and financial assistance to persons with disability.