KISHAN SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) KISHAN Singh and three others, the petitioners herein, hailing from village Shampura, Tehsil and District Ropar, without pleading that they were also proprietor of the village and their land was subjected to prorata cut to carve out a chunk of land for common purposes, have filed this petition challenging resolution dated 2.12.1999, resolving to gift land measuring 108 Kanals to Sant Baba Maan Singh Charitable Trust, the sixth respondent herein, as also order dated 9.4.2001 vide which, the Government accorded sanction to the resolution of the Gram Panchayat dated 2.12.1999. They have also called in question resolution dated 17.4.2001 gifting further piece of 30 kanals of Shamlat land to the same very respondent.

(2.) BRIEF facts, as have been projected in the present petition, are that consolidation proceedings were carried out in village Shampura and land measuring 157 kanals was reserved for Pasture, Toba, Hada Rori, Than Mata Rani etc. Jamabandi for the year 1995-96, Annexure P-1, has been relied upon to state that the land was provided for common purposes after applying prorata cut on the holdings of the proprietors of the village. For the same purpose, reliance has also been placed on the consolidation proceedings, Annexure P-2, dated 3.5.1952. It is then pleaded that the Gram Panchayat, Shampura, the fifty respondent herein, passed resolution gifting 108 kanals of Shamlat land to the sixth respondent to establish academy. The land proposed to be gifted, it is further pleaded, is Pasture (Charand) carved out after applying prorata cut on the holdings of the proprietors. Aggrieved by the resolution aforesaid, the petitioners made representation, Annexure P-4 dated 6.1.2000, mentioning therein that the land is being gifted to the sixth respondent for establishing academy/college, although many institutions, Government as well as private, were already in existence within a radius of one kilometre from the village. Representation, Annexure P-4, was followed by representations, Annexures P-5 and P-6, dated 8.8.2000 and 28.2.2001, respectively. The Government, it is then pleaded, granted the sanction for gifting 78 kanals of land to the sixth respondent vide order, Annexure P-7, dated 4.4.2001. In the close vicinity of the sanction order, Annexure P-7, the fifth respondent passed by another resolution, Annexure P-8, dated 17.4.2001, gifting 30 kanals of Shamlat land to the same very respondent. Even though, it is pleaded, the earlier resolution, Annexure P-3, pertains to 108 kanals of land whereas sanction was accorded to gift only 78 Kanals. Resolution, Annexure P-3, order, Annexure P-7 and subsequent resolution, Annexure P-8, have been stated to illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutonal primarily on the ground that the land in question was carved out after applyinng prorata cut on the holdings of the proprietors of the village during the consolidation proceedings and by virtue of Sectiion 23-A of the Consolidation Act, such land would vest in the Gram Panchayat for managerial purposes whereas, the proprietors shall continue to be owners of the land. The other ground challenging the resolutions and the order, as referred to above, is that there was no necessity for establishing an educational academy/college when there were so many such like institutions already existing in the close vicinity of the land, subject matter of dispute.

(3.) IT is then pleaded that present litigation is sponsored in nature since the replying respondent has undertaken to impart free education to the children of this very village. There are about 5 to 6 private schools around this village, who are zealous (jealous ?) of its progress and development. Now after the construction of primary wing, the villagers have withdrawn their children from these conventional schools and sent them to this academy. These private schools are now apprehending that with the construction of middle and matric wing of this academy, their schools may suffer irreparable set back. It is then pleaded that the petitioners have acquiesced in the construction of the building of the academy, as they kept quiet when the construction was in progress.