CHADURANGA KANTHRAJ Vs. P. RAVI KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Alleging wilful disobedience of the Orders dtd. 21/11/2014, 17/5/2022 and 19/3/2024 passed by this Court, these contempt petitions have been filed for punishing the respondents for their alleged contumacious act.

(2.) The background in which the orders dtd. 21/11/2014 and 17/5/2022 came to be passed can be succinctly narrated as under: Undisputedly the land measuring 15 acres and 39 guntas (hereinafter referred to as 'subject land') and the adjoining properties collectively measuring 456 acres belonged to the erstwhile Maharaja of Mysore. The legal heirs of deceased Maharaja of Mysore amongst others and/or claiming through them are before this Court alleging wilful disobedience of the aforestated orders.

(3.) The State enacted the Bangalore Palace (Acquisition and Transfer) Act 1996 (herein after referred to as "BPAT" Act) to acquire the Bangalore Palace and adjacent land including all the buildings around on the grounds enumerated therein. The constitutional validity of the same was unsuccessfully challenged by the legal heirs of Maharaja of Mysore before the High Court of Karnataka and an ad interim order of Stay of the operation of the Act came to be passed by the High Court on 10/12/1996. On conclusion of hearing writ petitions came to be dismissed vide Order dtd. 31/3/1997 and four weeks' time was granted to the writ petitioners to file an appeal before this Court and interim order granted on 10/12/1996 which was in operation till disposal of the writ petitions came to be continued till then. Subsequently, appeals came to be filed, and this Court by Order dtd. 22/4/1997 granted stay of dispossession and the Special Leave Petitions came to be admitted on 30/4/1997 and order of status quo came to be passed pending disposal of the appeals. The said appeals are pending before this Court.