CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has refused to quash the tender floated by Tasmac to allow bar contractors to collect empty bottles and the court also held that the tender is not in violation of the buy-back scheme.
The bench was hearing a batch of petitions seeking to quash the tender floated to permit the bar contractors to collect the empty bottles from the consumers, claiming that it is in violation of their vested rights.
If the State decides to implement complete prohibition, nobody can claim any legitimate expectation, observed the court. “The petitioners, the bar contractors, or Tasmac can never have any legitimate expectation that people would subject themselves to the ill-habit of drinking and that they will derive revenue out of it”, wrote a special division bench comprising Justice N Sathish Kumar and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy.
Petitioners Raveendran Subburaj and M Ashok Kumar are the successful bidders to collect empty bottles from Tasmac vending shops in Coimbatore South and North and Perambalur, a pilot scheme directed by the court to safeguard ecology spoiled by bottles thrown haywire.
The petitioners stated that despite their contract period being still valid, Tasmac has floated another tender in October 2023 to permit the bar contractors to collect the empty bottles from the consumers, which violates their vested rights and this new tender violates the buy-back scheme directed by the court.
The bench wrote that the officials were also present before us and explained as to how the entire system works. “Therefore, we are satisfied that our orders are not violated by the tender conditions”, the HC bench ordered.
Till date we see that no such complaint from any customer has been received, with regard to the buy-back scheme which is being implemented, read the judgment.
Tasmac promised that shortly it is going to print a barcode (instead of stickers) on the bottle. Upon scanning of the bar code the return sum of Rs 10, with the identity of the bottle sold at the particular shop, can be identified.
The bench directed Tasmac that every detail of the modalities and the manner in which it has to be implemented from the stage of affixing the bar-code till the return of the money to the customers and completing accounts in respect of the empty bottles be placed before this court.
Further, the bench also directed Tasmac that the money per bottle is returned every day to the bar contractor, the same cannot be returned by way of cash but only through the banking transaction.