LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday restrained the Punjab government from implementing a notification about fixing the ex-mill and retail price of sugar at Rs80 and Rs85, respectively.

Justice Shahid Jamil Khan passed the order on petitions filed by Tandlianwala Sugar Mills and others and summoned provincial secretary for industries, cane commissioner and officials of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for Wednesday (today).

The counsel for the mills argued that the government tarnished the reputation of the petitioners by leveling false allegations of hoarding the sugar. They said the industries department deputed its officials in the mills to enforce the ex-mill price of sugar.

They argued that the government could not enforce its prices on the mills. They asked the court to set aside the impugned notification about fixing the prices of the commodity.

The judge suspended the notification and summoned the respondents.

The Directorate General Industries, Prices, Weights and Measures Punjab had issued a directive to all commissioners and deputy commissioners that the retail price of sugar should not be fixed more than Rs85 per kilogram after the federal government calculated the ex-mill price at Rs80.

The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) Punjab Zone had rejected the rates and announced challenging the same before the court.

Published in Dawn, April 7th, 2021