Madras High Court on 31st October lifted upward Indian Oil Corporation's modified policy of giving just one LPG cylinder to the head of the family. They were found saying there is no legal moral weakness in IOC limiting subsidised LPG supply.

While discharging an appeal by one R Muthukrishnan, who had two gas connections here and Nagapattinam, the First bench comprising Chief Justice R K Agrawal and Justice M Sathyanarayanan said there is no legal moral weakness in IOC limiting supply of subsidised LPG connection to households in ratio of one connection for household headed by an adult member of the family. IOC had cancelled the second connection. Muthukrishnan was known to have struggled in opposition that he had the two connections beyond a decade and his connection at Nagapattinam was cancelled in 2010 unreasonably and unlawfully. In fact, he submitted he had two households at two different places and disbelief in the existence of connection at one household violated on his fundamental right.

In its counter, IOC explained that Muthukrishnan origianally had three connections, two at Chennai and one at Nagapattinam. It summoned officially an amendment to LPG (regulation of supply and distribution) 2000, in which the word 'Person' was replaced with 'household,' and said this amendment had resulted in detection of multiple connections, which were made void. IOC further said LPG is a subsidized commodity and it is the privilege made available to consumers and that multiple connections would hit supply to more consumers.

This struggling together in opposition was accepted by a single judge, who rejected the petition filed by Muthukrishnan. The first bench, in precedence of which the petitioner's present appeal came up on 31st October, lifted upward the single judge's order. They have also mentioned that there was no error otherwise moral weakness in that order, which summoned officially Clause 3(1) of the modified order specifying one LPG cylinder connection for one household under PDS.

(AW:SB)