MOHAN LAL Vs. MAHMOOD-UR-REHMAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BOTH these contempt petitions arise from same set of facts and raise identical questions of law, therefore, both of them are decided together.

(2.) BEFORE the real controversy is taken up, it will be pertinent to mention certain facts here -in -below:

(3.) SOME riots took place on 13.1.1989 in Jammu city, which resulted in burning and causing of damages to certain shops. Some of the persons whose property got destroyed during the said riots, filed various writ petitions in this court. One of such writ petitions was entitled: Mohan Lal and others V/s Union of India and others (being OWP No. 263/1991). Second petition came to be filed under the title: Pawan Cloth House V/s Union of India and others (being OWP No. 271/1991). Another writ petition came to be filed under the title: M/s Inder Puri General Store and others V/s Union of India and others. This writ petition was decided by a learned Single Judge of this Court, and is reported in AIR 1992 J&K page 11. This was the first petition to have been decided out of all the petitions which were filed. Another writ petition filed under the title: M/s Geet General Stores V/s Union of India and others (being WP No. 273/1991) was also decided by the learned Single Judge on the analogy of the judgment delivered in Inder Puris case. While deciding the writ petition titled: Mohan Lal and others V/s Union of India and others (being WP No. 263/1991) this court also decided a batch of four other writ petitions bearing Nos. WP No. 975, 977 and 978 of 1989. The writ petition titled: M/s Pawan Cloth House Vs. Union of India and others was decided separately. All these writ petitions were disposed of by the learned Single Judge on the strength of judgment delivered in M/s Inder Puris case. An LPA was preferred by the State agasint the judgment delivered in M/s Geet General Store and others, in which there were ten respondents. This appeal was taken up by the Division Bench and was decided vide judgment dated 28 -8 -1995. Appeals were also filed by the State in the cases of Pawan Cloth House and Mohan Lal and others. They were dismissed by the Division Bench for non prosecution, and applications for their restoration are pending disposal.