BHAGWAN DASS Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Sri Siddharth Singh, learned counsel for the appellant-writ petitioner, Sri C.S. Rawat, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel for the State of Uttarakhand, Sri V.K. Kohli, learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of respondent nos. 4 and 5 and Sri T.S. Bindra, learned counsel appearing on behalf of respondent nos. 7 and 8 and, with their consent, this appeal is being disposed of at the stage of admission.

(2.) The petitioner (appellant herein) invoked the jurisdiction of this Court filing Writ Petition (M/S) No. 1450 of 2007 on 4/9/2007 wherein he sought a mandamus commanding respondent nos. 2 and 3 to deliver possession of the allotted land, admeasuring 0.700 hectares situated in Bagral village, Dehradun, to the appellant-writ petitioner; to direct them to incorporate the change in the revenue records; and to award exemplary costs to the appellant-writ petitioner, against the respondents, taking into account the mental agony and pain caused to him during the course of litigation.

(3.) In the order under appeal, the learned Single Judge observed that, according to the petitioner, the subject land, which was declared as evacuee property under the provisions of the Evacuee Property Act, 1950 (for short the "1950 Act") was allotted to his father, and a Sanad was issued under the Displaced Persons (Compensation and Rehabilitation) Act, 1954 (for short the "1954 Act"); the said order of allotment attained finality under Sec. 27 of the 1954 Act; the State had initially contended that the land stood vested in it; on an order passed by the Revenue Tribunal, it was declared that the State had no right or title over the subject property; and since the State had dispossessed the appellant-writ petitioner on the ground that the title over the property vested in them, and as the claim of the State has been negated by the Revenue Tribunal, it was obligatory on the State Government to deliver possession of the said property back to the appellant-writ petitioner.