SC directs high court to decide sugar price case within 30 days

• The Supreme Court directed LHC to decide the case pertaining to sugar price fixation.
• The court was told that mill owners were selling sugar at Rs200 per kg.
• Punjab govt has moved LHC against a stay order on a petition by sugar mill owners. 

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday directed the high court to hear cases on a daily basis pertaining to price fixation of sugar and decide the case within 30 days.

A three-member bench headed by Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan heard the case pertaining to the price of sugar in the country. At the outset of the hearing, the counsel for the sugar mills adopted the stance that the identical case was fixed for a hearing on September 20 before the high court.

The additional attorney general (AAG) said that the top court had ordered to submit the difference in sugar price before it, adding that the high court had also suspended the prices fixed by the provincial government. He said that the sugar price was Rs98 per kilogram but the sugar mills were now selling it at Rs200 per kg.

The AAG prayed the court to issue directives for submission of the report to the registrar’s office of the top court pertaining to the difference in the price. At this, Justice Ahsan observed why there was haste as the high court would make the decision after hearing the case.

The AAG said the recovery in price would be difficult with the passage of time. The court subsequently ordered the high court to hear the case on a daily basis and announced the verdict in 30 days.

The Punjab government has moved the Lahore High Court (LHC) against a stay order, which was granted by the court on a petition of the sugar mill owners.

The government stated the LHC had stopped the implementation of a notification on fixing the price of sugar. Due to this stay, the price of sugar could not be fixed, the government said. It implored the court to withdraw the injunction.

The government stated that the sugar mills had challenged a notification, the Punjab Foodstuffs (Sugar) Order 2023, issued by the food department on July 28 empowering the cane commissioner to fix the ex-mill price of sugar after hearing the representative body of the millers.

It said a consultative process was initiated in pursuance of the notification for the determination of sugar price, which has also been assailed by the millers before the court. The government said the court allowed the consultative process of the price determination to continue but suspended its final decision.

The applicant pleaded urgency as the sugar price had gone out of control to the detriment of the general public. It added that the millers/association failed to participate in the consultative process despite several notices, only to delay the matter.

The government pleaded due to the embargo on the determination of final price, sugar price is being artificially maneuvered by means of stocking, hoarding and smuggling.

It said the retail price of the commodity in the open market has surged significantly as in some districts it has exceeded Rs230 per kg, showing a rise of almost Rs110 since January this year. The average price of sugar is hovering around Rs190 to Rs230 per kg.

It argues that if the court does not vacate the stay order, the concerned authorities will incur irreparable losses. The government urged the court to withdraw the stay order in the broader interest of the public.

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