Fuel price hike challenged in high court
A civil miscellaneous application was filed with the Lahore High Court seeking direction to set aside the recently-issued notification raising the prices of petroleum products.
The Judicial Activism Panel (JAP), a non-governmental organization (NGO), filed the application through advocate Azhar Siddique and other lawyers on Saturday. The petitioner contended that the recent and abrupt fixation of petroleum product prices bears no legal justification. In the interest of equity and to enforce Articles 3, 4, 5, 9, 23, 24 and 38, JAP sought that the notification be set aside.
The petitioner contended that the caretaker government pushed through another hike in petrol prices on Friday night by Rs26.02 per litre and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs17.34 per litre. The increase brings the price of petrol to Rs331.38 per litre and HSD to Rs329.18 per litre, said a tweet by the Ministry of Finance after midnight. The tweet added that the decision was taken in keeping with increasing petroleum prices in the international market. No revision was specified regarding the rates of kerosene or light diesel oil.
Read Petrol, diesel witness massive price hikes
This latest increase comes on the heels of a massive hike on September 1st, when the interim government raised fuel prices by up to Rs18 per litre. That jump had come after similar hikes on August 15th. The price hike is based on existing tax rates and import parity prices, mainly caused by currency fluctuation and slight increases in international oil prices.
It is pertinent to mention that petroleum and US dollar prices in international markets decreased over the past couple of weeks, but petroleum prices in Pakistan are increasing as the incumbent caretaker government has failed to protect fundamental rights guaranteed under Article, 9, 14, 15 and 25 read with Articles 4 and 5 of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973.
In the past, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) increased petroleum prices after a period of 6 months, however changes seem to be happening on a monthly basis.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 17th, 2023.