Fixation of minimum sugarcane price: SHC dismisses sugar mills’ plea

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday dismissed a lawsuit filed by the sugar mill owners against fixation of minimum price of sugarcane by the Agriculture Supply and Price Department, observing that price fixation was done within the framework of Sugar Factories Control Act.

The Mirpurkhas Sugar Mill and others had challenged the issuance of the government notification with regard to fixation of minimum sugarcane price. The plaintiffs counsel submitted that price fixation of sugarcane was not fixed under Section 16-A of the Act as neither recommendations of the board were adhered to nor consideration for fixation of minimum price on the basis of Section 16-A and 16-B of the Act were followed. They submitted that the board meeting held to fix the price was a coram non judice as the secretary Agriculture, Supply and Price Department was absent and that too would render the meeting of the Sugarcane Control Board for fixation of minimum price as unlawful.

The Sindh Abadgar Board opposed the case and submitted that the cabinet deliberated on the fixation of minimum purchase price of sugarcane and the provisions of 16-A and 16-B of the Act were not violated, in fact, complied with in letter and spirit.

The SHC’s single bench, comprising Justice Mohammad Shafi Siddiqui, after hearing the arguments of the counsel, observed that the cabinet deliberated and fixed the minimum price on the strength of Section 16-A and 16-B of the Act 1950 i.e. the cost of production of the sugarcane and the return of the growers from alternate crops and the general trend of prices of the agricultural commodities.

The court observed that the plaintiffs’ counsel, during the course of their arguments, had not attributed any malafide as far as the fixation of the minimum price by the Sindh government; however, it is only argued that the cost of production of the sugarcane and return to the growers from alternative crops were not taken into consideration. The court observed that the minimum price

sugarcane as fixed by the Sindh government on November 4, 2021 was within the frame of Section 16 of the Act, 1950 and dismissed the lawsuits of sugar mills owners.