Loss of records no ground to deny plot allotment, says HC

Nearly 26 years after an applicant was declared successful in a draw of lots, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that the loss of original records cannot be a ground to deny allotment of a residential plot to him.

Holding that the denial amounted to prima facie commissions of “the torts of malfeasance, misfeasance and nonfeasance” a Division Bench directed the release of “exemplary compensation comprised in a sum of Rs 2 lakh,” payable by the respondent concerned.

The direction came after the Bench of Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Vikas Suri was told that the petitioner had been deprived of his rightful claim due to missing records. It held that such a lapse on part of the authorities could not override the applicant’s legal entitlement.

The Bench observed that petitioner-applicant Gurcharan Singh was declared successful in a draw of lots in 1999 and had deposited earnest money as far back as 1982. The court held the petitioner was entitled to the benefit of “promissory estoppels” and “legitimate expectation”. His claim was backed by photocopies of registration and payment documents, which were never disputed as fake.

After hearing advocate GPS Bal for the petitioner and the rival contentions, the Bench observed that Gurcharan Singh, a Haryana resident, applied for a 125 sq yd plot under a 1982 Ludhiana Town Improvement Trust scheme. He was allotted a plot through a draw on September 10, 1999. But he was neither informed about the draw, nor the allotment. In 2000, the trust cancelled all 19 allotments, citing loss of original records.

Punjab