IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Civil Writ Petition No.4432 of 2008 Date of decision: 12th November, 2009 Ramandeep Kaur and another … Petitioners Versus State of Punjab and others … Respondents CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA Present: Mr. Akshay Bhan, Advocate for the petitioners. Mr. Anil Kumar Sharma, Addl. AG Punjab for respondent No.1. Mr. Gurminder Singh, Advocate for respondent No.2. Mr. H.S. Sidhu, Advocate for respondent No.3. KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA, J. (ORAL) Petitioners are residents of S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali. M/s Modern Planners (Pvt.) Ltd. (Respondent No.4) had flouted a housing colony and had applied to respondent No.1 (Department of Housing and Urban Development, Govt. of Punjab) for acquiring land for the purpose of raising the Colony. A license was granted in favour of respondent No.4 on 6th June, 1986. Copy of the license is annexed with the present petition as Annexure P-1. Respondent No.4, Coloniser submitted a site plan for approval and it is stated that on 24th June, 1988, vide Annexure P-2, permission was granted to Coloniser to lay out means of access to roads in the controlled area in village Daun. On 16th March, 1990, vide Annexure P-3, change of land user was granted in favour of the Coloniser, subject to renewal of the license. One REI Agro Limited, vide Annexure P-4, executed a lease deed in favour of the petitioners and they were allowed to use commercial premises, measuring 2700 square feet bearing SCF No.8 in Green Enclave, Kharar Civil Writ Petition No. 4432 of 2008 Road, S.A.S. Nagar, Mohali. Green Enclave is the colony, for which respondent No.1 had granted license to respondent No.4. Petitioners, on 31st December, 2007, approached the Additional Chief Administrator, Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (hereinafter referred to as, ‘GMADA’) with a request that No Objection be granted to install electricity connection in their premises, i.e. SCF No.8, Green Enclave, Village Daun, Tehsil & Distt. S.A.S.Nagar, Mohali. The request was declined vide Annexure P-6 on the ground that electricity connection has been demanded in a colony, which is unauthorised. On the basis of above facts, petitioners have approached this Court by filing present writ petition with a prayer that the impugned order (Annexure P-6) be quashed and commercial electricity connection be provided to the premises of the petitioners, i.e. SCF No.8, Green Enclave, Village Daun, Tehsil & Distt. S.A.S.Nagar, Mohali. In response to the writ petition, Punjab State Electricity Board stated that non-residential supply cannot be made available to the petitioners, as they are having an electricity connection for residential purposes, i.e. domestic supply. GMADA, respondent No.2 filed its response and stated that even though permission was granted to the Coloniser on 26th June, 1988 but the same was withdrawn on 21st July, 1989. To fortify this submission, reliance has been placed upon Annexure R2/1, a notification issued by the Government, which stated that license issued by the Deputy Commissioner, Ropar for setting up Colony to M/s Modern Planners (Pvt.) Ltd. at Kharar stand cancelled. The question, which arises for consideration of this Court, is that once the Colony, which is conceived and under permission of the authorities, is built, later, on withdrawal of the permission or cancellation of the license, can the residents be deprived of the electricity connection ? 2 Civil Writ Petition No. 4432 of 2008 This Court is of the view that electricity is required by the residents of the Colony for their day to day use and for better living. In these days, electricity is an essential requirement and one cannot conceive living without it. Gone are the days, when any business could be carried by lighting a lamp of clay. The induction of the petitioners at the premises is because at one time, permission was granted to the Coloniser to raise the Colony. Accordingly, respondent No.2, GMADA is granted liberty to determine whether the Colony is authorized or unauthorized, and whether the structure raised by the petitioners is to remain at the site or they are to be evicted from the same. But, so long the petitioners are in the premises, they cannot be deprived of the electricity connection, therefore, without prejudice to the rights of all concerned, it is ordered that on deposit of necessary amount, calculated and communicated by respondent No.3, it shall provide commercial electricity connection to the premises of the petitioners within two months from today and respondent No.2 shall issue No Objection with a rider that providing of commercial electricity connection, will vest no right in the petitioners, regarding status of the Colony and it will be without prejudice to the rights of all concerned. With the observations made above, present writ petition is disposed of. [KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA] JUDGE November 12, 2009 rps 3