HC gives four days to Punjab's Panchayat Director

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, July 14

The Punjab and Haryana High Court today gave four days to the Director, Rural Development and Panchayat Department, Punjab, to file an affidavit on further steps/action initiated against the sarpanch and the panches of a gram panachayat for “dereliction of duty and conniving with encroachers”.

The direction came in a matter where the Bench of Justice Augustine George Masih and Justice Sandeep Moudgil was told that action had been taken regarding the removal of illegal encroachments in a case where 26 illegal occupants had occupied 13 kanal and 19 marla of gram panchayat land.

The Bench had, on May 11, given six-week time to the Director to file the affidavit, along with the latest status report on eviction proceedings. The Bench today fixed the case for further hearing on July 18 after the state counsel submitted that the affidavit had been “prepared”. But it did not fulfil “the requirement and the mandate” of the order passed on May 11. The Director, present in the court during the proceedings, also prayed for time.

The Bench, on the previous date of hearing, had observed that action taken for the removal of encroachments “may so be carried out”. But the action taken against the sarpanch and the panches of the gram panchayat was also required to be specified.

Taking up the petition by Parshotam Lal against the state of Punjab and other respondents, the Bench had added that an earlier affidavit filed by the Director had indicated that the gram panchayat had failed to remove/initiate proceedings for eviction of persons found to be in illegal possession, leading to the appointment of the Administrator.

The directions followed the filing of a status report by way of an affidavit by the Phagwara Block Development and Panchayat Officer. The Bench, among other things, was told that the gram panchayat had filed a case under Section 7 of the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act against 26 persons before the District Development and Panchayat Officer-cum-Collector, Panchayat Land, Kapurthala.

The Bench has already observed: “When the court had gone through an order, which has been passed by the Director, Rural Development and Panchayats, Punjab, dated February 17, the pathetic affairs at the level at which the order has been passed was highlighted and brought to the notice of the counsel for the state, who had, on her asking, asked the Secretary, Rural Development and Panchayats, to be present in the court…. He acknowledges in the court that there is some abrasion on the part of the department and he would take immediate remedial steps for putting things right,” the Bench observed.

Removal of encroachments

The direction came in a matter where the Bench of Justice Augustine George Masih and Justice Sandeep Moudgil was told that action had been taken regarding the removal of encroachments in a case where 26 illegal occupants had occupied 13 kanal and 19 marla of gram panchayat land.