SAT DEV KHULLAR Vs. MUNICIPAL COMMITTEE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is plaintiffs regular second appeal against the judgment and decree of the Additional District Judge whereby the judgment and decree passed in favour of the plaintiff has been reversed.

(2.) Briefly put, the plaintiff submitted a site plan for raising construction of godowns and a room in the suit property to the Municipal Committee, Batala, for necessary approval in terms of the Municipal Act. This plan was submitted on 29.9.1983 which has been rejected on 31.1.1984 thereby leading to the filing of a suit for declaration to the effect that the order of rejection dated 31.1.1984 is illegal, ultra vires, inoperative, null and void and not .binding upon the plaintiff on the following grounds; (i) that the site plan was submitted by the plaintiff on 29.5.1983 and since the same was not rejected within the statutory period of two months, the same automatically stands sanctioned; (ii) that the proposed construction to be raised on the private property of the plaintiff does not contravene the Bye -laws of the Municipal Committee; (iii) that the order rejecting the site plan is vague and non -specking; (iv) that the impugned order is mala fide and has been passed at the instance of Dr. Raghunandan Kumar Gupta and Dr. V.K. Gupta merely to harass the plaintiff.

(3.) The defendant Committee put in appearance, filed written statement and controverted the various material averments made in the plaint. As per case set up by the Municipal Committee, the proposed plan was against the Municipal Rules and Bye -laws and so has been rightly rejected on 31.1.1984. Otherwise the suit is barred Under Sec. 49 of the Punjab Municipal Act (for short 'the Act').