CHANDRA PAL Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Sri V.K. Singh, Senior Advocate, assisted by Sri S. Shekhar for the Petitioners and learned Standing Counsel for the Respondents.

(2.) The Petitioners are Pramukhs of Kshetra Panchayats elected in the year 2010. The Petitioners have come up in this writ petition praying for quashing the orders dated 7th July, 2011 and 8th July, 2011 issued by the District Rural Development Agency, Hamirpur and Mahoba respectively by which all the Block Development Officers/Programme Officers of District Hamirpur and District Mahoba were informed that in view of the dismissal of Writ Petition No. 57838 of 2007 the earlier notification dated 5th October, 2007 issued by the State Government laying down that accounts of the Kshetra Panchayat shall be operated by the joint signatures of Block Development Officer/Programme Officer and Assistant Development Officer (Panchayat) shall revive and accounts be operated with the joint signatures of the aforesaid two officers. The Petitioners have also prayed for quashing the Government order dated 7th September, 2007 and notification dated 5th October, 2007.

(3.) Under Section 4 of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (hereinafter referred to as the 2005 Act), the State Government published a scheme dated 8th February, 2007. Item No. 6.4 of Chapter VI of the said scheme provided that an account shall be opened in the name of Rojgar Guarantee Nidhi which shall be operated jointly by Block Development Officer and Block Pramukh of the Kshetra Panchayat. Paragraph 6.4 of the said scheme of the State Government was amended by Government order dated 7th September, 2007 to the effect that the operation of the account shall be done by the Block Development Officer/Programme Officer and Assistant Development Officer (Panchayat). The Government order dated 7th September, 2007 was challenged before this Court by means of Writ Petition No. 47034 of 2007 (Gyanendra Singh and Ors. v. Union of India and Ors.) in which a Division Bench of this Court passed an interim order on 27th September, 2007 prima facie being satisfied that the scheme dated 8th February, 2007, which was earlier notified, cannot be amended by an executive order of the State Government dated 7th September, 2007. The State Government thereafter issued a notification dated 5th October, 2007 published in the U.P. Gazette Extraordinary on 5th October, 2007 modifying Paragraphs 6.3 and 6.4 of the scheme dated 8th February, 2007 which provided that account at Block level shall be jointly operated by Assistant Programme Officer (Block Development Officer) and Assistant Development Officer (Panchayat). Writ Petition No. 57838 of 2007 (Ran Vijay Singh and Ors. v. Union of India and Ors.) was filed before this Court and a Division Bench by order dated 23rd November, 2007 granted an interim order directing that the account shall be operated under the joint signatures of the Block Development Officer (Programme Officer) and Block Pramukh. Subsequently the said writ petition has been dismissed by Division Bench of this Court on 19th August, 2010. After dismissal of the writ petition, letters dated 7th July, 2011 (Annexure-10 to the writ petition) and letter dated 8th July, 2011 (Annexure-11 to the writ petition) have been issued noticing dismissal of the writ petition and providing that notification dated 5th October, 2007 has become effective and account be operated jointly by the Assistant Programme Officer (Block Development Officer) and Assistant Development Officer (Panchayat). Aggrieved by the aforesaid, the Petitioners have come up in this writ petition.