Thursday, September 14, 2017

News Clipping: HC sends Gwal Pahari dispute to civil court [11.08.2017]

Tribune News Service, Chandigarh| Aug 11, 2017


Less than six months after the controversial mutation of 464 acres of Gwal Pahari land in Gurgaon came under the judicial scanner, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today largely referred the matter to the civil court. The copy of the orders was not yet available.
Disposing of a majority of the pleas before it, the Bench of Justice SS Saron and Justice Avneesh Jhingan kept a couple of petitions pending while directing the parties concerned not to carry out construction, alienate the land or create third-party rights.
Situated in the foothills of the Aravallis, Gwal Pahari in Gurgaon district is close to New Delhi and Faridabad. The development is significant as Haryana, on a previous date of hearing, had asserted that the shamlat land was with the Municipal Corporation-Gurgaon (MCG).
The Bench was told that 164 acres of the total 464 acres had been vacated and 300 notices issued. No less than 139 persons had filed civil suits and stay had been ordered in some cases.
A petition in public interest was filed in the matter by Gurgaon resident-cum-RTI activist Harinder Dhingra for a CBI probe to find the persons involved in prime land mutation.
Alleging the involvement of bureaucrats, politicians and local revenue officials, he had claimed that ownership of the disputed land was with the gram panchayat of Gwal Pahari since 1940 and transferred to the MCG in 2010.
The then Financial Commissioner (Revenue), not competent to pass an order on mutation in 2012, had favoured some builders, he alleged. The order was passed on the application of a private party challenging the 2010 transfer of land.
The order was challenged by the MCG before the Financial Commissioner, who stayed the order. But in October 2015, another IAS officer had restored the order. Thereafter, the matter had reached the state government and a decision was taken for mutation of land in favour of the MCG.
But, this order, too, was declared void in January by District Collector TL Satyaprakash. This order was stayed by Gurgaon Divisional Commissioner D Suresh in February, the court was told.
The Bench had already made it clear that encroachments from shamlat or village common land were required to be removed by taking legal recourse. The Bench had added that ordering an inquiry into the matter would not help and the solution lay in following the Haryana Municipal Act.
The Bench asserted that the accepted position was that the land was with the MCG since 2010. “If it is shamlat land, provisions under Section 408-A need to be initiated and we will monitor it,” the Bench asserted. Section 408-A of the Haryana Municipal Act deals with power to evict persons from corporation premises and land.
The case
  • A petition in public interest was filed in the matter by Gurgaon resident-cum-RTI activist Harinder Dhingra for a CBI probe to find the persons involved in the mutation of 464 acres of Gwal Pahari land in Gurugram
  • Alleging the involvement of bureaucrats, politicians and local revenue officials, he had claimed that ownership of the disputed land was with the gram panchayat of Gwal Pahari since 1940 and transferred to the MCG in 2010.

    http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/hc-sends-gwal-pahari-dispute-to-civil-court/450221.html

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