REVOLUTIONARY YOUTH ASSOCIATION Vs. CHANDIGARH ADMINISTRATION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present writ petition, styled as a public interest litigation, has been filed by an unregistered organization claiming to be involved in assisting the marginalized sections of society. The grievance is made on behalf of the residents of Dhanas whose katcha houses were alleged to have been built on private lands owned by villagers which were demolished with the assistance of the police force on a winter cold day of 27.12.2012 by the enforcement staff of the Union Territory of Chandigarh. This action is stated to have been followed up by another such clearing exercise of alleged vacant public land on 16.1.2013 preceeded by demolition of 100 homes in Indira Colony, Manimajra, U.T., Chandigarh. In this behalf, newspaper reports and photographs have been annexed to the petition. The Government is stated to have been threatening to demolish all unauthorized colonies and, thus, the petition was filed claiming that if proper survey had been conducted and notices served human suffering would have been avoided. The action is stated to have been taken without making any arrangement for rehabilitation or temporary accommodation.

(2.) The directions which are sought for from this Court are to the following effect:

(3.) The Chandigarh Administration has resisted the petition by filing an affidavit through the Land Acquisition Officer. The affidavit states that a humanitarian approach has always been adopted for the economically weaker sections of the society by allotting dwelling units for their rehabilitation and till the date of filing of the affidavit in May, 2013, 32666 suitable dwelling units stood allotted in different sectors, the details of which have been set out. An intensive programme of housing and rehabilitation of economically weaker sections of society living in slum conditions is stated to have been undertaken by resettling them in low cost tenements and sites under the Chandigarh Licencing of Tenements and Transit Sites in Chandigarh Scheme, 1975 followed by the Licencing of Tenements and Sites and Services in Chandigarh Scheme, 1979. Further steps were being taken under The Chandigarh Small Flats Scheme, 2006 for which the eligibility conditions have been set out as under:-