KANNADAPARA SANGHATANEGALA OKKUTA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS writ petition is filed as public interest litigation by the petitioners comprising of certain registered associations, former m. ps. , m. l. as. ,former mayor and deputy mayor and an individual seeking to quash the impugned order at Annexure-D , dated 12-4-1999 in which it is stated that the central government has decided to shift the headquarters of south-western railway from Bangalore to hubli. Petitioners have also sought to restrain respondents 1 to 4 from shifting the aforesaid headquarters from Bangalore to hubli and to direct respondents 1 to 3 to examine the feasibility and take steps to create additional zonal headquarters of the railways at hubli in the lines of additional zonal headquarters created at bilaspur.

(2.) IN the writ petition the petitioners have elaborately stated the history of introduction of railways in india, the objectives to have a railway network throughout india, the railway lines laid in karnataka, the importance of having zonal headquarters of railways in the capital city of the state, the requirement of co-ordination of various departments of both central and state governments, the facts relating to various committees constituted for the establishment of zonal headquarters the acceptance of tandon committee report, the amount allocated in the budget, the work in progress to create links between Bangalore and bidar. Certain figures are also furnished. It is not necessary to refer to all those facts and figures mentioned in the writ petition.

(3.) THE short point for consideration is, whether the shifting of headquarters of south-western railway from Bangalore to hubli as communicated in the impugned letter at Annexure-D is legal, valid, necessary and justified? This has to be tested with the admitted facts and figures furnished in the statement of objections filed on behalf of the respondents 1 to 4 who have sought to justify the impugned communication.