Speaking at a press conference, MPM President Mustafa Osman said an official of the High Court had told him the new conditions had been imposed because there had been complaints against some auctioneers.

“If that’s the case,” he said, “then go ahead and punish those auctioneers. Why punish us all?”

He said the order, which went into effect last month, affected the livelihood of about 80% of auctioneers in the country.

He described it as a violation of the “principle of natural justice” because auctioneers were not given the opportunity to be heard.

“Out of the blue, one day, when we came to court to conduct auctions, they told us that we weren’t qualified,” he said. “That was the first time any of us heard about the new conditions.”

Citing the Auctioneers Licences Ordinance, Mustapha said that only the minister had the power to make rules.

Under the ordinance, he added, no academic qualifications were needed for one to work as an auctioneer and no upper age limit was set.

“It only states that an auctioneer is required to be a fit and proper person and that he must be older than 18 years.”

The new order requires that an auctioneer be no older than 60 years.

Mustafa said that new orders were usually applicable only to new applicants. However, the latest order affects all auctioneers.

“Law and medical practitioners, architects, accountants, real estate agents and other professionals are not imposed with an age limit,” he said. “Why is it that we auctioneers are?”