WPPIL/144/2022
2023 Latest Caselaw 443 UK

             IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND
                                  AT NAINITAL
                   HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI VIPIN SANGHI
                                          AND
                      HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE ALOK KUMAR VERMA

                WRIT PETITION (PIL) NO. 144 OF 2022
                           21ST FEBRUARY, 2023
BETWEEN:
Sunil Prasad Bhatt                                             .....Petitioner.
And

State of Uttarakhand & others                                  ....Respondents.

Counsel for the Petitioner : Mr. Mahavir Kohli, learned counsel.

Counsel for the Respondents : Mr. S.S. Chaudhary, learned Brief Holder.

The Court made the following:

JUDGMENT:(per Hon'ble The Chief Justice Sri Vipin Sanghi)

Issue notice. Learned counsel appears and accepts

notice on behalf of the respondents.

2. The petitioner has preferred the present writ

petition in public interest claiming that there are several

persons who are in illegal occupation of the government

residences under Pooled Housing Scheme at New Tehri. The

petitioner seeks a direction to the respondents to evict the

illegal occupants, and also to recover rent from them as per

the Rules.

3. Along with the petition, the petitioner has placed on

record information obtained under the Right to Information

Act. These informations date back to the year 2019.

Considering the passage of time, we are not inclined to act on

the basis of said information. The petitioner has also placed

on record one instance of the year 2021, where notice has

been issued to Mr. Rakesh Rana, Retired Administrative

Officer, Election Office, New Tehri, dated 04.01.2021, from

whom recovery is sought to be made of penal rent. According

to the petitioner, the respondents are not taking any effective

steps to either get the unauthorized occupants evicted, or

recover occupational charges/ penal rent from the illegal

occupants.

4. Government accommodation is meant to be

occupied by government servants who are entitle to the same

under the Rules. It is not uncommon to see government

accommodation not being vacated by the government

servants once they retire, or are transferred, and they

continue to hold the accommodation even after their

entitlement thereto has come to an end; without obtaining

any extension, or; without making payment for their

continued occupation. In our view, this creates difficulties for

others who may become entitle to allotment of such

accommodations. Government accommodation is allotted to

government servants near to their place of work/ posting, so

as to enable them to discharge their duties and

responsibilities efficiently and effectively. Non-availability of

government accommodation to those, who are entitle to it, is

bound to impact the efficiency and functioning of government

servants who are denied such accommodation due to their

occupation by unauthorized occupants.

5. We, therefore, dispose of this writ petition with a

direction to the Secretary, Uttarakhand State Estate

Department, to compile information in respect of all

government accommodations which are in unauthorized

occupation; to compute penal charges/ rent payable by such

unauthorized occupants for the accommodation

unauthorizedly held by them; to initiate proceedings for

eviction of such unauthorized occupants of government

accommodations, if not already done, and; to recover penal

charges from such unauthorized occupants. Steps in these

terms should be taken within four weeks under intimation to

the petitioner. In case, the respondents do not act, it shall be

open to the petitioner to seek revival of this petition.

6. The writ petition stands disposed of in the aforesaid

terms.

7. Pending application, if any, also stands disposed of.

(VIPIN SANGHI, C.J.)

(ALOK KUMAR VERMA, J.) Dated: 21st February, 2023 NISHANT