CWP No.7637 of 1988 -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CWP No.7637 of 1988 Date of decision:11.03.2011 Mandir Baba Mal Ji through the members of its Managing Committee and others ..... Petitioners Versus Director Consolidation, Punjab, Chandigarh and others ..... Respondents CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIVE BHALLA Present: Mr.Viney Saini, Advocate for Mr.G.S.Nagra, Advocate for the petitioners. Mr.S.S.Sahu, AAG, Punjab for respondents no.1 to 3. Mr.M.L.Saini, Advocate for the LRs of respondent no.25. ***** RAJIVE BHALLA, J.(ORAL) This order shall dispose of CWP Nos.7637 of 1988 and 2910 of 1991 as they involve adjudication of similar questions of fact and law. For the sake of convenience, facts are being taken from CWP No.7637 of 1988. The petitioners are a Mandir and residents of the village who pray that 2 kanals of land allotted to the Mandir is too small and the original land allotted, has been illegally reduced by the Director Consolidation, while providing a path. The respondents on the other hand, assert that no land should be reserved for the Mandir as it did not exist during consolidation. Counsel for the petitioners submits that the Mandir has been CWP No.7637 of 1988 -2- in existence since time immoral and as no path was provided to the Mandir, during consolidation, the petitioners and others filed an application for providing a path. The consolidation authorities while considering the alignment of a path allowed a path but reduced the land of the Mandir to 2 kanals/2.5 kanals. The land so allotted does not even cover the main premises of the Mandir. It is argued that authorities under the Act have no jurisdiction to reduce the land of Mandir from 13 kanals 10 marlas to 2 kanals/2.5 kanals. Counsel for the private respondents submits that under the garb of providing a path to the Mandir, the Director Consolidation has allotted land to the Mandir. The Mandir appeared in the revenue record for the first time in the jamabandi for the years 1979-80. I have heard counsel for the parties and perused the impugned orders. Consolidation authorities have rightly rectified an error in consolidation proceedings by providing a path to the Mandir. The only dispute that survives is the area to be allotted to the Mandir. The initial allotment made to the Mandir was 13 kanals and 10 marlas but was reduced to 2 kanals and 5 marlas, while providing a path. No reason whether cogent or otherwise has been assigned by the authorities for reducing the land of the Mandir. In this view of the matter, the writ petition is partly allowed and the order dated 27.12.1985, passed by the Director Consolidation is set aside with respect to reduction of the land allotted to the Mandir. The Director Land Records, Punjab, is directed to examine the land records and pass appropriate orders with respect to CWP No.7637 of 1988 -3- the landholding of the Mandir. The private respondents shall be at liberty to raise the plea that the Mandir cannot be provided land as it did not exist at the time of consolidation. Parties are directed to appear before the Director Land Records, Punjab on 05.05.2011 who shall decide the matter within three months from receipt of a certified copy of this order. 11.03.2011 [ RAJIVE BHALLA ] shamsher JUDGE