IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CWP No.13730 of 2011 Date of decision: 02.08.2011 Raj Rani and others …..Petitioners versus State of Haryana and others ……Respondents CORAM: Hon’ble Mr.Justice Jasbir Singh Hon’ble Mr.Justice Augustine George Masih Present: Mr.S.P.Khatri, Advocate for the petitioners Jasbir Singh, J. (Oral) This writ petition has been filed with a prayer to quash the notifications, issued under Sections 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (in short, the Act) on 2.2.1989 and 22.2.1990, respectively. Vide those notifications, a vast tract of land, including land owned by the petitioners and one M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited, besides the other land, was put under acquisition, for a public purpose, namely, ‘for the development and utilization of land as residential and commercial area for Sector 17 Panipat’. Award was passed on 21.2.1992. Petitioners remained satisfied with the above said acquisition and never agitated the acquisition of their land before any forum. It is an admitted fact that the petitioners are also the shareholders in M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited and one Narinder Kumar Mahajan is its Managing Director. After the acquisition had become final, M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited through Narinder Kumar Mahajan moved CM application, stating therein that the vacant piece of land under acquisition is needed for expansion of the industrial unit. Taking note of the same, the land measuring about 5 bighas was released in favour of M/s CWP No.13730 of 2011 S.D.Processors Private Limited vide order 30.1.2007 (P5). (The released land includes the land which was kept out of acquisition when notification under Section 6 was issued). Petitioners’ vacant piece of land measuring 4 bighas 11 biswas is situated next to the land owned by M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited, which admittedly is also a family concern of the petitioners. After getting the land released in favour of the above said industrial concern, the petitioners started agitating their rights to get their vacant piece of land released. They executed a power of attorney in favour of Narinder Kumar Mahajan and on the basis of that attorney, an application (P10), to get the land in dispute, released from acquisition was moved on 9.5.2008, in which, it was clearly mentioned that the land, owned by the petitioners is needed for expansion of M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited. That application was dismissed by the competent authority vide order dated 27.11.2008 (P11). The petitioners, by concealing the dismissal of their above application through their attorney, again moved an application with a prayer to release their land on 19.1.2010 (P12). When no action was taken, they came to this Court by filing CWP No.5292 of 2010, which was disposed of vide order dated 30.9.2010 (P13), directions were issued to the respondents to consider their application on merits. Release of the land was claimed by the petitioners, stating that a similar benefit has been given to M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited, whereas discriminately, the said benefit has not been extended to them. When the above said writ petition was filed, it was not brought to the notice of the Court at the time of hearing that M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited is also owned by the petitioners as co-sharers. In compliance to the order dated 30.9.2010, passed by this Court, matter was considered by the High Powered Committee and after 2 CWP No.13730 of 2011 analyzing the facts on record, the Committee, in its report dated 8.12.2010 opined as under:- “The Annexure P-10 and P-12 mentioned in the orders dated 30.9.2010 of the Hon’ble High Court were also examined by the Committee. Although some of the existing units have been released in the pocket, however, case of petitioners does not have parity with those cases, since those were mostly exiting Industrial units and the land of petitioners is vacant. The built up area of M/s S.D. Processors Ltd. has already been released and the vacant 4 bigha 11 biswa land has been unauthorisedly sold by M/s S.D. Processors in the form of plots of 3 biswa to 8 biswa to these 16 petitioners who are all residents of Amritsar. Since, M/s S.D. Processor has already sold the land to petitioners, it does not have any locus standi to request for release. In Annexure P-10, M/s S.D. Processors has requested for release on the pretext of expansion of their existing industrial unit and in Annexure P- 12, the 16 petitioners have requested for release stating that they wish to set up small industrial units on these plots. Sector 13, 17 Panipat are residential use sectors where though the existing non conforming use (industrial units) have been adjusted in accordance with the provisions of the Development Plan for Panipat Controlled area prepared under the Punjab Scheduled roads and Controlled Areas Restriction of Unregulated Development Act, 1963, however, the Development Plan does not permit expansion of existing non 3 CWP No.13730 of 2011 conforming use or setting up of new industrial units in a residential sector. It was, therefore, unanimously decided by the Committee that the land of petitioners can not be released.” On the basis of report made by the Committee, Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary to Government, Haryana, Urban Estates Department, passed the following order to reject a prayer of the petitioners, for release of their land:- “I have examined the report of the committee. The case of petitioner is different from the case of Maha Laxmi Spinners Ltd. (CWP No.5070 of 2007) and Sanjeev Kumar (CWP No.8329 of 1990) as in case of Maha Laxmi Spinners Ltd. The existing industrial unit of the petitioner was ordered to be released by the Hon’ble High Court whereas land of present petitioners is vacant. In case of Sanjeev Kumar, the land under public purpose of green belt was ordered to be acquired and remaining land was to be released. This remaining land outside green belt was unplanned and petitioner was running a Banquet Hall in the name of Apeksha Garden. In the instant case, land of petitioners is lying vacant. After acquisition, land has been planned and specific land use has been assigned to the land in the approved layout plan of the sector. As per policy, vacant land can not be released. Therefore, no discrimination with the petitioners is established in acquiring their land vis-à-vis other land owners whose land has been acquired for sector 13, 17 Panipat.” Counsel for the petitioners, by making reference to the site plan, has stated that the land on three sides of the land owned by the petitioners has been released from acquisition and as such, their land cannot be put to any beneficial use by the respondents. We are not impressed with the argument raised. Land owned by the petitioners is situated on the sector road and as per opinion formed by 4 CWP No.13730 of 2011 the Committee, it can be put to any use conforming to the Scheme for which the land was acquired. Otherwise also, once the petitioners had got the land released for expansion of their industrial concern, namely, M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited, by giving that very reason again, it is surprising that how they can raise that very ground for release their land, when second application was filed in individual capacity. Admittedly, Narinder Kumar Mahajan is the Managing Director of the above said industrial concern. Application (P10) was also filed through him and this writ petition is also signed by Narinder Kumar Mahajan. Facts mentioned above, clearly indicate that actually, M/s S.D.Processors Private Limited is interested in getting this land released and not the petitioners. Under the circumstances, mentioned above, the petitioners are also not entitled to agitate the ground of discrimination, after getting the land released in the name of above said industrial concern. Otherwise also, as is mentioned by the Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary to Government, Haryana, the land was earlier released only for running the industrial units. No case is made out for interference. Dismissed. (Jasbir Singh) Judge 02.08.2011 (Augustine George Masih) gk Judge 5