HC stays show-cause & recovery notice on fair price shops

Raipur: The Chhattisgarh high court has imposed a stay on the show-cause notice issued by the state government to two fair price shops (FPSs) as well as recovery orders involving over four lakh rupees against them.
While pronouncing the order on Monday, Justice P Sam Koshy directed the government for a physical verification of the report of a food inspector whose report claimed that a particular quantity of food grains could not be reimbursed.
On March 17, 2023, Two Self Help Group (SHGs) Kiran SHG Bandha Tola and Lakshmi Bai Maa Bamleshwari Women's SHG under Sahaspur Lohara tehsil of Kabirdham district were served show-cause notices along with the recovery order. The notices read that according to the report of the food inspector, the rest of the food grains have not been reimbursed till date and asked the SHGs to submit their reports within two days or else action will be taken against them for the recovery of revenue. The state civil supplies department had also asked Kiran Self Help Group for the deposit of Rs 1,05,280 and Lakshmi Bai Ma Bamleshwari for the deposit of Rs 3,03,000.
Distressed by the recovery order, both the SHGs moved the high court and filed a petition through counsel Mateen Siddiqui, Sandeep Singh and Narendra Meher. The secretary of the food and civil supplies and consumer protection department of Chhattisgarh government, Kawardha collector and Sahaspur sib-divisional were made respondents by the petitioner.
The counsel for the petitioners submitted to the court that the physical verification was done by the concerned food inspector in the office itself, not at the fair price shops. “The food inspector showed the data of the stock through their system and took the signature of the petitioner instead of a physical verification. Neither verification nor panchnama was done. The verification of the stock was also done in a highhanded manner and also unilaterally,” the counsel submitted.