LHC asks govt to tell procedure for hiking prices of petroleum products

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has asked the government to apprise the court regarding the procedure of hiking the prices of petroleum products in the country, ARY News reported on Thursday.

A two-member bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) headed by Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh heard the petition filed against the hike in petroleum products’ prices in the country.

The court has sought procedure to hike the prices from the government besides issuing a notice to the Attorney General of Pakistan (AGP).

The petitioner stated that there was no procedure to fix the prices of petroleum products in the country while the government is receiving 17 per cent sales tax.

READ: PETROL, GAS PRICES WILL LIKELY GO UP AGAIN, PM SAYS DURING NATIONAL ADDRESS

The petitioner further stated that the government’s imposition of sales tax on essential products was a violation of the Constitution.

In July last year, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) had approved a recommendation for regulating petroleum prices in the country after every 15 days.

On October 30, Prime Minister Imran Khan had turned down the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) proposal suggesting an increase in fuel prices from November 1.

READ: REVISION OF PETROL PRICES AFTER EVERY 15 DAYS CHALLENGED IN LHC

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) had proposed a hike of Rs6 per litre in the price of petrol and a Rs8/litre hike in that of high-speed diesel (HSD). The prices of petroleum products are fixed by the government for 15 days.

Earlier on October 15, the premier had approved an increase of Rs10.49 per litre in petrol price. The petrol price had been increased up to Rs137.79 per litre, high-speed diesel up to Rs134.48, kerosene oil Rs110.26 and light diesel oil Rs108.35 per litre.