M A I N   N E W S

SC orders takeover of ex-PM’s ashram
Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, July 24
A Division Bench of the Supreme Court in a significant order passed today directed the takeover of 500 acres of land by the Haryana Government at the Bhondsi Ashram gifted to former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar earlier by the Bhondsi Gram Panchayat and approved by the state.

The Bench comprising Mr Justice M. B. Shah and Mr Justice R.P. Sethi in their brief order directed the state government officials to file a compliance report before the court by July 31 in the matter.

The judges passed the order during the resumed hearing of the public interest petition filed by Mr B L Wadhera, a lawyer, alleging that the ‘Bharat Yatra Kendra’ Trust of Mr Chandra Shekhar which had set up a sprawling ashram at Bhondsi was in illegal possession of hundreds of acres of land, including 500 acres of forest land.

The petitioner alleged that the trust ashram had also encroached upon 10 acres of BSF land and the entire farm arch of the village was being misused.

Mr Kirit Raval, Additional Solicitor General, appearing in the matter, submitted that a central team headed by Mr Rakesh Hooja, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, had found the transfer of 500 acres of forest land to the ashram to be illegal.

The judges observed that they would consider the legality of the possession of other land in the possession of Mr Chandra Shekhar’s trust after two weeks.

The judges further asked the state government officials involved in the takeover of the land in pursuance of today’s order not to cut any tree in the process. The officials were directed to report how many trees existed on the land.

Earlier, Mr Wadhera submitted that the two pieces of forest land measuring 271 kanals and 151 kanals had been approved by the Haryana Government for the establishment of a dispensary, a college and a polytechnic institute.

He alleged that no dispensary was constructed on the gifted land initially. Later, a dispensary was constructed by the trust in the village out of Rs 6 lakh received from the state government as Chief Minister’s Relief Fund.

Meanwhile Mr Chandra Shekhar on Tuesday said the Bharat Yatra Trust at Bhondsi in Haryana was never in possession of the land which the Supreme Court ordered to be taken back by the state government.

Prabhjot Singh adds
CHANDIGARH: The trust is headed by former Prime Minister Chandra Sekhar. Mr B.L. Wadhera had challenged the allotment of land by the State Government and transfer of panchayat land to the trust for various purposes, maintaining that the land allotted had not been used for specific purposes.

Mr Justice M.B. Shah and Mr Justice R.P. Sethi directed Mr A.N. Prasad, Deputy Inspector-General, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, and Mr M.K. Singh, Additional Director-General, Border Security Force, besides several officials of the Gurgaon district administration, including the Deputy Commissioner, Mr A.K. Singh; the DDPO, Mr Varinder Singh; the BDO, Mr Narinder Singh; the Tehsildar of Sohana, Mr Gopi Chand, and others to take immediate possession of this land.