SHC Rejects Petition Against Govt’s Fuel Pricing Mechanism

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has dismissed a petition challenging Pakistan’s petroleum pricing mechanism, ruling that decisions on fuel prices, taxes, and fiscal policy fall within the authority of the executive and legislature rather than the judiciary.

A two member constitutional bench headed by Justice Adnan ul Karim Memon ruled that courts cannot ordinarily interfere in economic and fiscal policy unless such decisions are clearly unlawful, discriminatory, or violate the Constitution or statutory provisions.

The petition, filed by Syed Khalid Shah, challenged the government’s mechanism for determining petroleum prices, arguing that domestic fuel prices had not been reduced in line with falling international crude oil prices.

The petitioner also claimed the government was using the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) primarily as a revenue generating tool and sought greater transparency in fuel price calculations.

The court, however, observed that petroleum pricing involves several complex factors, including international crude oil prices, exchange rate movements, freight costs, refinery margins, taxes, and the government’s fiscal requirements. It said such matters require expert policy decisions and are not suitable for judicial review.

The bench further noted that the petitioner had failed to demonstrate any violation of a mandatory legal provision or establish that the pricing mechanism was unconstitutional, arbitrary, or motivated by bad faith.

The court also ruled that dissatisfaction with fuel prices or the government’s fiscal measures does not, by itself, justify constitutional intervention. It emphasized that the High Court is not an appellate forum for reviewing economic or fiscal policies and should exercise judicial restraint unless a policy is clearly contrary to the law.

Concluding that no enforceable fundamental right had been violated, the SHC declared the petition not maintainable under Article 199 of the Constitution and dismissed it at the preliminary stage.