India, July 16 -- The Bombay High Court on Tuesday upheld the 1994 guidelines that provide reservation to Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), and Micro and Small Enterprises (MSE) applicants in road transport contracts offered by public sector oil marketing companies such as Bharat Petroleum (BP).

A division bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne was hearing a petition filed by Nashik-based Patil Roadlines, which was awarded a contract in 2018, challenging the validity of eligibility criteria in the 2018 tender allotment for fuel transport across the state from BP's plant in Manmad.

The tender conditions required eligible bidders from the general category to possess a minimum of five lorries, out of which t...