HC disposes of Adarsh Colony dwellers’ petition

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has paved the way for the Chandigarh Administration to utilise land in the Adarsh Colony area for developing public utility infrastructure in sync with the Chandigarh Master Plan. Disposing of a writ petition filed by the occupants, a Division Bench asserted the land was apparently under the unauthorised occupation and was “to be utilised for developing public utility infrastructure in alignment with the Chandigarh Master Plan”.

The Bench of Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Aman Chaudhary made it clear that the UT Administration’s action was “well within the four corners of law.” The court noted in the order that the petitioners were occupants on land owned by the Chandigarh Administration. They had earlier secured a partial civil court decree in 2016, which protected them from dispossession except in accordance with law and required authorities to consider their resettlement “keeping in view the objects of welfare State as well as scheme for resettlement of slum dwellers”.

The Bench asserted the petitioners, in 2019 sought execution of the decree, but their plea was dismissed on July 18, 2023, with observation that the executing court could not traverse beyond the decree. It was, among other things, observed that the finance department—vested with policymaking power—was not a party to the suit.

“The finance department, UT Chandigarh, is not a party in the present execution. Therefore, no direction can be issued to the Finance Department as prayed in the execution application. The objections are allowed and since the case of the decree holders is pending for consideration in the finance department, no useful purpose would be served by continuing with the present execution application,” the court had asserted.

The Bench added that the counsel for the petitioners produced order dated June 18, whereby the claim submitted by them for rehabilitation stood rejected. “Thus, there is no gainsaying that one of the two directions passed by the Civil Court stands complied with,” the court added.

The UT senior standing counsel, Amit Jhanji, submitted that a public notice was duly issued on June 12, while referring to the petitioners’ arguments that dispossession was to be carried out only in due course of law

“Apparently, the land in question, which was under the unauthorized occupation of the petitioners, is to be utilised for developing public utility infrastructure in alignment with the Chandigarh Master Plan…The present writ petition stands disposed of. However, leaving the petitioners with a liberty to challenge the order dated June 18 in accordance with law, if so advised,” the Bench concluded.

Chandigarh