RITA SINGH Vs. GOVT. OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SHRI Urgasen Singh, husband of the petitioner, before this Court was employed in Border Security Forces (BSF). He died on 16.08.1992 due to militants attack while his battalion was on internal security duty in Kashmir. The learned counsel for the petitioner states that at the time the husband of the petitioner was killed by the militants, his battalion was operating in the J&K under the Command of Indian Army. In the year 2010, DDA came out with a scheme for allotment of residential flats in Delhi known as DDA Housing Scheme, 2010. The said scheme had certain reservation in allotment, inter alia, for the 'war widows'. The petitioner, claiming to be a war widow applied for allotment of a residential flat under the said scheme and an LIG flat No. 330 at D-6, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi was allotted to her. The petitioner also visited the DDA officer for the purpose of verification of her documents, but no demand letter was sent to her. Vide notice dated 19.10.2011, she was asked to appear in DDA office along with the documents specified in the said letter. One of the documents required from her was original certificate of being a war widow, from the Competent Authority. In response to the said notice, the petitioner appeared in DDA office, but was told that since her case did not fall in the defence category, the allotment would be cancelled.

(2.) THE petitioner sought information from various authorities with respect to definition of the expression 'war widow'. The Border Security Force vide letter dated 12.06.2012 informed DDA that the husband of the petitioner had sacrificed his life in a militant attack on 16.08.1992, while deployed in Kashmir Valley. BSF strongly recommended that the allotment made to the petitioner may be continued since her husband had sacrificed his life for the nation. Since the possession of the flat allotted to her was not given to the petitioner, despite the aforesaid letter from BSF, she is before this Court by way of this writ petition, seeking the following directions:-

(3.) ADMITTEDLY , Delhi Development Authority did not define the expression 'war widow' in its Housing Scheme, 2010. The said expression has not been defined in any other statute or statutory Rule and regulation. The expression 'war' is defined in Shorter Oxford English Dictionary to include the employment of armed forces against a foreign power or against an opposing party in the State, any active hostility or struggle between living beings, conflict between opposing forces or principles, and a hostile attack or invasion. Primarily, it was for Delhi Development Authority which came out with the aforesaid scheme to decide it as to who would be considered to be 'war widows' for the purpose of allotment under the said Scheme. That however was not done. The exercise will therefore have to be undertaken now; instead of shifting the onus to the Govt. or some other Authority. It goes without saying that while taking a view in this regard, Delhi Development Authority should not lose sight of the fact that the officers and jawans of para-military forces such as Border Security Force are constantly engaged in an important duty in the security of the nation, at tremendous risk to their life and, therefore, attempt should be to give an interpretation which is compassionate, benevolent and large hearted and does not discourage the persons who are engaged in rendering such valuable services to the nation.