NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday, in its order, refused to entertain a plea seeking direction to the Centre and others to ensure mandatory and uniform labelling on every dispensing nozzle at petrol pumps, disclosing the exact percentage of ethanol in petrol.
A two-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Justice M M Sundresh and Justice Prasanna B Varale -- while dismissing the plea filed by petitioner, Narendra Kumar Goswami -- however, granted him the liberty to approach the concerned High Court with his grievances.
During the hearing in the case before the top court, Goswami argued that consumers have the right to know the composition of the fuel they are purchasing and pointed to the absence of any ethanol-content disclosure on petrol receipts.
"See the receipt, there is no mention of ethanol. I have the right to know," Goswami submitted.
Hearing these submissions, the Attorney General (AG) R Venkatramani, who was present in the courtroom for the Union of India, objected to the plea and said, "He wants the Government of India to be answerable to him!"
The court did not find any merit in the petition and refused to pass any order or direction in the case.
The petitioner, Goswami, moved the apex court and sought directions to the Respondents -- Centre and others -- to forthwith issue instructions to all Oil Marketing Companies to display, prominently in the local language, the exact ethanol percentage at every petrol pump and on every dispensing nozzle, and to ensure that every fuel bill or invoice immediately reflects the ethanol content of the petrol sold.
"Direct the respondents to publish, within a short time, a provisional vehicle-compatibility advisory based on currently available data, so that consumers are placed on notice regarding the suitability of E20 for their specific vehicles. Direct that until a transparent transition framework and compatibility-disclosure mechanism is implemented, no consumer shall be prejudiced in terms of warranty, insurance or service entitlement solely on account of having used E20 fuel in the absence of a reasonably available alternative," the plea said.
The petition sought that a direction should also be made to all the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to publish on their official websites and mobile applications the ethanol percentage available at each retail outlet and to make such information publicly searchable pending final disposal of the present petition.
