Kerala High Court orders fuel dealership for the blind

Kochi: Kerala High Court on Monday set aside a mandate prescribed by the Hindustan Petroleum Limited barring visually challenged persons from owning distributorship.  The court observed that the ban on such persons was  a discrimination and that HP should allow blind persons to run dealership.

Justice A. Muhammed Mustaque issued the order while considering a plea filed by P. Baby  of Thiruvananthapuram, who submitted that he was denied an LPG distributorship at Kottiyam in Kollam district. “The state has a duty to take affirmative action and to provide a level-playing field to those who are deprived on account of disability. Modern technological advancements and improvement of social conditions cannot be ignored,” the court said.

The mandate stipulates that a totally blind person is not eligible for a distributorship. HP took a stand that personal attention is required for customer service, physical verification of cylinders etc.

The court observed,  “it appears that while forming the guidelines, the policy makers were ignorant about the functions that can be carried out by totally blind persons. A totally blind person will be able to carry out the verification of cylinders with the help of a spouse or a trusted assistant,” it said.