MADHURI DEVI Vs. BIHAR STATE HOUSING BOARD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) 1. Heard both the parties.

(2.) AN advertisement was published by the respondent Board intimating the public that it has acquired a large chunk of land which upon being developed would be allotted amongst others to the members of the public belonging to middle income group. The advertisement invited applications from persons belonging to middle income group for allotment of developed land so acquired. Petitioners belonged to middle income group. They applied for being alloted such a plot of land. By an allotment- letter, the respondent Board alloted Plot No. V684 to the writ petitioners on certain terms and conditions. Petitioners complied with those terms and conditions by making payment of the earnest money, as indicated in the allotment letter and also by entering into a hire purchase agreement. Petitioners also paid all the instalments, as were mentioned in the hire purchase agreement, though may not be on the due dates, but with interest, as was provided for in the hire purchase agreement. The Board accepted such payments. According to the petitioners, they paid whatever was required to be paid in terms of the allotment letter and the hire purchase agreement. However, despite such payment, possession of the alloted plot of land was not made over to the petitioners on the ground that the same is in possession of encroachers, who could not be removed.

(3.) IN order to sort out this dispute, an attempt was made to have the original alloted plot vacated in order to facilitate making over of possession thereof to the petitioner. At that juncture the added respondents appeared and they held out that plot No. V684 is situate on RS Plot No. 940 of village Sadipur Jogi and the said plot had not been acquired by the State Government for or on behalf of the respondent Board and accordingly, the respondent Board had no right, title or interest in the said plot. It was stated that the added respondents are the owners of the said plot of land and the respondent Board has no interest in the said land. It was also contended that an appropriate authority in the presence of the respondent Board has held that the respondent Board has no interest in the said plot of land. INspite of such finding, I directed the respondent Board to bring on record any document which would suggest that the respondent Board acquired title to the said plot of land. Many adjournments were granted for that purpose and ultimately, the learned Senior counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent Board very fairly confessed that the respondent Board has no document in its custody, nor is able to produce any document from the Office of the Land Acquisition Collector to establish that the respondent Board acquired title to the said plot of land at any point of time.