The Delhi High Court has directed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to provide a Low Income Group (LIG) flat to a man, who applied for the same 45 years ago.
Ishwar Chand Jain had applied for a Low Income Group (LIG) flat under DDA’s New Pattern Registration Scheme (NPR scheme) on October 3, 1979.
The single-judge Bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh observed that it was the dream of a majority of Delhiites to have a property in their name in the city and the DDA’s failure to provide the flat to Jain on time was mala fide, arbitrary, and amounted to misconduct.
The High Court directed DDA to provide an LIG flat to petitioner Ishwar Chand Jain within four weeks at the rate that was prevalent in 1996, the date of allotment of the flat.
It rejected the DDA’s stand that since the main file of the petitioner was not traceable in their records, it was not able to say on which date the DAL [Demand cum Allotment Letter] was issued except the statement that DAL was issued at address 3 [third address provided by Jain].
Noting that DDA was an instrumentality of the State and required to act fairly and in accordance with law, the High Court said the actions of DDA were malafide and arbitrary to the petitioner, who has been in legitimate hope of getting a flat.
It said the total silence on the material particulars by the DDA clearly showed misconduct on its behalf.
Under the NPR scheme, a person was eligible to be allotted a DDA flat if he or she did not own any residential house or plot in full or in part on leasehold or freehold basis in the name of his/her wife or husband or any of his/her minor or dependent children or dependent parents, minor sisters and brothers.
A certificate of registration was issued to Jain in July 1980. After almost 17 years of the scheme, DDA held a draw of lots in March 1996 and Jain was declared successful for a flat in Rohini.
The Counsel appearing for DDA contended that a Demand cum Allotment Letter (DAL) was issued to the petitioner at his address no. 3, but he failed to pay the demanded amount.
The High Court, however, observed that sending DAL to this address was meaningless as Jain had communicated to the authority in 1988 that his new address was now in Hisar.
It said the DAL sent to the petitioner on a wrong address despite the right address being on record of the DDA. It was incumbent upon the DDA to issue DAL to the petitioner on the new given address 4, which was the last known address on the record of the DDA.
The petitioner was represented by Advocates Praveeen Kumar Aggarwal and Abhishek Grover, while Advocate Ajay Brahme appeared for DDA.