Delhi High Court
Smt.Om Wati vs Mcd And Anr on 13 March, 2012
Author: Hima Kohli
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ W.P.(C) 1249/2012 and CM 2716/2012
Decided on: 13.03.2012
IN THE MATTER OF
SMT.OM WATI ..... Petitioner
Through: Mr. M.M. Kashyap, Advocate
versus
MCD AND ANR ..... Respondents
Through: Mr. Kapil Dutta, Advocate for
R-1/MCD with Mr. K.C. Mittal, AO/MCD/SZ and
Mr. Tikam Singh, Inspector, MCD/SZ.
Mr. Shariq Mohammad, Advocate for R-2/Delhi
Police.
CORAM
HON'BLE MS.JUSTICE HIMA KOHLI
HIMA KOHLI, J. (ORAL)
1. The present petition is filed by the petitioner praying inter alia
for directions to the respondents to allow her to carry on squatting at the
originally allotted tehbazari site measuring 6'x4' (open to sky), situated
opposite Shop No.E-39, near the Temple at Hauz Khas Market, New Delhi.
It is the contention of the counsel for the petitioner that the petitioner's
Tehbazari site is not outside the park from where the officers of the MCD
have removed her and all the Tehbazari holders on the ground that an
underground parking has been built in the park. Instead, he claims that the
site of the petitioner is situated opposite shop No.E-39, near the Temple at
Hauz Khas Market, New Delhi and the petitioner ought not to have been
disturbed as her site did not create any hindrance for the underground car
parking across the road.
2. The matter had come up for admission on 02.03.2012, on which
date, counsel for respondent No.1/MCD, who appeared on advance copy,
had sought time to produce the original records so as to verify the exact
location of the site as allocated to the deceased husband of the petitioner in
terms of the letter dated 27.05.2002 issued to him. Pertinently, the
petitioner herein has stated that her husband had expired in the year 2005,
whereafter she had filed an application for mutation with respondent
No.1/MCD on 23.02.2010, which is stated to be pending consideration. In
para 4 of the writ petition, the petitioner has averred that she has been
carrying on trade peacefully at the allotted tehbazari site situated "opposite
shop No.E-39, near Temple, Hauz Khas, New Delhi".
3. On 21.02.2012, respondent No.1/MCD had sent notices to all the
Tehbazari holders sitting at the site outside the park, at Hauz Khas Market,
New Delhi, informing them that as the MCD had constructed an underground
parking in the park, the Tehbazari holders located at the exit and entry gates
of the underground parking had to be shifted from there so as to facilitate
the smooth ingress and egress of vehicles. It was further informed by the
MCD that the authorized Tehbazari holders would be considered for being
shifted to Sector-VII, R.K. Puram Market No.2 in due course (Annexure P-
5).
4. Today, counsel for respondent No.1/MCD states on instructions
from the department that the site in question, which was allotted to the
husband of the petitioner has been duly described in the allotment letter
dated 27.05.2002 as "opp. E-39, Near Mandir, Hauz Khas Mkt.". Apart from
the aforesaid document, counsel for respondent No.1/MCD produces a copy
of the identity card issued by the MCD in favour of the deceased husband of
the petitioner, wherein the site of squatting has been similarly described.
Learned counsel also hands over the photographs of the site as taken on the
date of removal of the petitioner and of 26 other squatters located at the
same site, to indicate that the exact location of the squatting site of the
petitioner was behind the temple in the Hauz Khas Market. Copies of the
letter dated 27.05.2002 as also the identity card and the photographs of the
site handed over by the counsel for respondent No.1/MCD with copies to the
other side, are taken on record.
5. Counsel for the petitioner however disputes the fact that the
location of the site as indicated in the allotment letter dated 27.05.2002
issued by the MCD is near the temple. He states that the site is on the other
side of the road and therefore the petitioner should not be disturbed. The
aforesaid submission is not borne out from a perusal of the allotment letter
issued by the MCD in favour of the deceased husband of the petitioner as
also the Identity Card issued to him. The petitioner has not produced any
other document in support of her claim and there is no ground to disbelieve
the documents produced by the respondent/MCD.
6. Counsel for respondent No.1/MCD explains that the petitioner
and 26 other Tehbazari holders have had to be removed from the site in
question for the reason that the underground parking site is situated at the
back of the temple at the Hauz Khas Market and free ingress and egress of
the vehicles into the underground parking is required to be ensured. He
further states that in any case, in the letter dated 21.02.2012, the
authorized Tehbazari holders have been assured by the MCD that they would
be considered for being shifted from their present sites to Sector-VII, R.K.
Puram Market, No.2 and in terms of the aforesaid assurance given,
alternative sites have already been identified by the MCD and 16 authorized
Tehbazari holders including the petitioner herein shall be relocated to sites
located in Sector-VII, R.K. Puram Market and intimation in this regard shall
be communicated to them very soon.
7. In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances, this Court is
not inclined to entertain the present petition, which is accordingly disposed
of with liberty granted to the petitioner to approach the respondent/MCD for
identification of the exact tehbazari site, where she has been relocated to
enable her to carry on her trade from there.
8. The petition is disposed of alongwith the pending application.
(HIMA KOHLI)
MARCH 13, 2012 JUDGE
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