Delhi High Court - Orders
Okaya Infocom Pvt Ltd & Anr vs Govt Of Nct Of Delhi & Anr on 10 November, 2023
Author: Anup Jairam Bhambhani
Bench: Anup Jairam Bhambhani
$~4
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ W.P.(C) 12122/2021 & CM APPL. 37844/2021, CM APPL.
33485/2022
OKAYA INFOCOM PVT LTD & ANR. ..... Petitioners
Through: Mr. Sumit Bansal, Mr. Pankaj Gupta
Mr. Udaibir Singh Kochar, Ms. T.
Rampal and Mr. Utsav Garg,
Advocates.
versus
GOVT OF NCT OF DELHI & ANR. ..... Respondents
Through: Mr. Anuj Aggarwal, ASC for
GNCTD with Ms. Arshya Singh,
Advocate.
Mr. Jivesh Kumar Tiwari, Senior
Panel Counsel with Ms. Samiksha,
Advocate for UOI.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ANUP JAIRAM BHAMBHANI
ORDER
% 10.11.2023 By way of the present petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioners pray for quashing of communication dated 24.09.2021 issued the Office of Sub-Registrar-VI D, Kanjhawala, Delhi, directing the petitioners to obtain a sanction / No-Objection Certificate („NOC‟) from the Consolidation Officer as a pre-requisite for registration of Sale Deed dated 26.02.2021 presented by petitioner No. 1 as „Vendor‟ and petitioner No. 2 as „Vendee‟.
This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 1 of 7The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33
2. Though no formal notice has been issued in the matter, counter-
affidavit dated 11.02.2022 has been filed on behalf of the respondents; whereupon rejoinder dated 03.03.2022 has also been filed on behalf of the petitioners.
3. Mr. Sumit Bansal, learned counsel appearing for the petitioners submits that the only objection raised by the respondents is that the sale deed presented cannot be registered until the parties submit a sanction / NOC from the Consolidation Officer, purportedly in compliance of section 30 of the East Punjab Holdings (Consolidation and Prevention of Fragmentation) Act, 1948 („EPH Act‟).
4. Mr. Bansal submits that as is seen from the table contained in para 4 of the Preliminary Submissions in their counter-affidavit, according to the respondents, consolidation proceedings in respect of Village : Ladpur which commenced vide notification issued under section 14(1) of the EPH Act on 10.09.1993, have been carrying-on ever since. It is pointed-out that the said table also shows that though passbooks have been issued to the bhumidars, but thereafter, several other steps towards the consolidation proceedings are shown as "Pending".
5. Mr. Bansal further submits that the only objection, namely that the petitioners have not obtained sanction/NOC from the Consolidation Officer, is contained in paras 6 and 7 of the counter-affidavit, which read as follows :
"6. That it is submitted that Section 30 of EPH Act prohibits transfer of land after issuance of Notification under Section 14(1) of the Act till pendency of consolidation without approval of Consolidation Officer (C.O.) to avoid complexities and no transfer of land is allowed till repartition of land.
This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 2 of 7The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33 Further, Office of the Divisional Commissioner has issued Order No. F.107/SDM-III(HQ)/LAND/2020/087592900/583 dated 04.02.2020 that NOC / Land Status Report (LSR) is mandatory in recently urbanized villages. Therefore, the Answering Respondents are bound by the above order and all actions thereto are being taken in good faith. A copy of Order No. F.107/SDM-
III(HQ)/LAND/2020/087592900/583 dated 04.02.2020 is annexed herewith as Annexure R1.
"7. That it is further submitted that the Answering Respondent did not issue NOC in respect of transfer of land of Village Ladpur on same line of action as was taken in Village Kanjhawala vide order no. F.05/Distt NW/Teh(K)/2018/3768-3775 dated 05.12.2019, as both villages namely Kanjhawala & Ladpur are notified for consolidation under EPH Act, 1948. A copy of the order no. F.05/Distt NW/Teh(K)/2018/3768-3775 dated 05.12.2019 is annexed herewith as Annexure R2."
6. The petitioners contend that their transaction of sale has been pending since 26.02.2021, on which date they presented the sale deed before the concerned Sub-Registrar of Assurances for registration, which however remains pending only for want of an NOC from the Consolidation Officer. It is submitted that an NOC has been declined purportedly on the basis that consolidation proceedings in respect of the village are still pending; however, as per the respondents‟ own admission, no steps have been taken for concluding the consolidation proceedings for the past 30 years. In the circumstances, it is argued, that the petitioners cannot be made to wait endlessly for conclusion of the consolidation proceedings.
7. Mr. Bansal further submits, that during the pendency of the consolidation proceedings, Village : Ladpur has been urbanised vide notification dated 16.05.2017 issued under section 507(a) of the Delhi This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 3 of 7 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33 Municipal Corporation Act, 1957; and in fact, post-urbanisation, revenue officials acting under the Delhi Land Reforms Act, 1954 or the Delhi Land Revenue Act, 1954 have no jurisdiction over the land in view of the verdict of the Supreme Court in Mohinder Singh (Dead) Through LRs and Another vs. Narain Singh and Others1 and of a Division Bench of this court in Kamaljeet Bajwa and Others vs. Government of NCT of Delhi and Others2.
8. Attention is further drawn to the provisions of section 30 of the EPH Act, which reads as follows :
30. Transfer of property during consolidation proceedings
- After a notification under sub-section (1) of Section 14 has issued and during the pendency of the consolidation proceedings no landowner or tenant having a right of occupancy upon whom the scheme will be binding shall have power without the sanction of the Consolidation Officer to transfer or otherwise deal with any portion of his original holding or other tenancy so as to affect the rights of any other land-owner or tenant having a right of occupancy therein under the scheme of consolidation.
9. It is argued that section 30 of the EPH Act does not impose an absolute bar on transfer of land under consolidation, and the limited restriction imposed is the requirement to obtain prior sanction for such transaction. Mr. Bansal submits, that substantial compliance of section 30 of the EPH Act can be ensured by directing that the intending purchaser of the subject land, viz. petitioner No. 2 M/s Mac Infraheights Pvt. Ltd. shall be bound by the outcome of the consolidation proceedings.
12023 SCC OnLine SC 261 2 2023 SCC OnLine Del 4192 This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 4 of 7 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33
10. Mr. Bansal also seeks to draw support from a judgment of a Co-
ordinate Bench of this court in Deepak vs. ADM LA South West & Ors., 3 to submit that in similar circumstances, in a case where consolidation proceedings were pending, the petition was disposed-of by clarifying that the sale deed executed in respect of the land in that case would be subject to the consolidation proceedings pending with respect to the village in question and that the transferee shall take the land subject to such consolidation proceedings, without affecting the rights of any other person under such proceedings.
11. Mr. Anuj Agarwal, learned ASC appearing for the respondents submits that section 30 of the EPH Act mandates that sanction must be obtained from the Consolidation Officer if consolidation proceedings in respect of the land are pending; and that impugned communication dated 24.09.2021 has been issued in compliance of that mandatory requirement. Learned ASC however submits, that the view taken in the various judgments cited on behalf of the petitioners is, of course, a matter of record.
12. In the circumstances, what is apparent to this court is that consolidation proceedings in respect of Village : Ladpur have been pending since 1993, that is for almost 30 years. Furthermore, there is no cavil that section 30 of the EPH Act does not impose an absolute bar against transfer of land during the pendency consolidation proceedings, except that it requires parties to obtain prior sanction/NOC from the Consolidation Officer for such transaction. However, since according 3 2023 SCC OnLine Del 1050 This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 5 of 7 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33 to the respondents themselves, several steps in the consolidation proceedings are still pending, it is uncertain when these steps will be completed. Clearly, the parties cannot be expected to wait endlessly for a transaction that they have intended to complete for the last two years.
13. Moreover, this court is also persuaded to accept that substantial compliance of section 30 of the EPH Act can be achieved by directing that the intending purchaser of the subject land, viz. petitioner No. 2, would be bound by the outcome of the consolidation proceedings. This position would not hinder the on-going consolidation proceedings, which might take their own time to conclude; while at the same time, the parties would be able to bring their pending transaction to a close.
14. In view of the above, without delving further into the matter, the present petition is disposed-of with the following directions :
14.1. Sub-Registrar of Assurances-VI D is directed to process the registration of the sale deed stated to have been presented to him on 26.02.2021, in accordance with law, without insisting on production of a sanction/approval/NOC from the Consolidation Officer. Let the needful be done within 02 weeks of a copy of this order being communicated to the Sub-Registrar. 14.2. It is further directed that the transferee/purchaser/petitioner No. 2
- M/s Mac Infraheights Pvt. Ltd. - shall be bound by the outcome of the consolidation proceedings in respect of the subject land;
and that transfer of the subject land in favour of petitioner No. 2 shall not affect the rights of any other person arising from the consolidation proceedings.
This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 6 of 7The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33
15. The petition stands disposed-of in the above terms.
16. Pending applications, if any, also stand disposed-of.
ANUP JAIRAM BHAMBHANI, J NOVEMBER 10, 2023/uj This is a digitally signed order. W.P.(C) 12122/2021 Page 7 of 7 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/11/2023 at 21:03:33