JAMMU: Justice Tashi Rabstan of Jammu and Kashmir High Court directed the State of J and K through Commissioner/ Secretary to Government Housing and Urban Development department and the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) / Building Operation Controlling Authority (BOCA) Jammu to de-seal the properties of the petitioners which were sealed by JMC / BOCA. The direction came in response to a batch of writ petitions listed before the High Court of J and K at Jammu.
Advocate A.K Sawhney appeared for the petitioner Shakeel Ahmed Zargar while V Bhat and Rupak Ratta represented other petitioners in separate writ petitions. The order was passed in writ petitions Nos. OWP 1366/2012, OWP 1701/2012, OWP 1557/2012 and OWP 851/2012, wherein the Court took on record the statements of the petitioners’ counsels that the properties would not be used for commercial purposes.
Consequently, the Court directed the respondents to de seal the properties and directed the petitioners not to use the property for commercial purposes. It may be mentioned that one of the petitioners Shakeel Ahmed Zargar had filed an application through Advocate A.K Sawhney and Aseem Sawhney for de-sealing the properties.
In the application, it was submitted that the said sealing was without any jurisdiction and was arbitrary. It was submitted that Petitioner’s family is facing lot of inconvenience during ingress and egress to the house through small door in the main gate which is open. Petitioner’s old ailing mother having orthopedic problem is facing great difficulties on this account. Since the house is constructed in the approved J and K Housing Colony and shall not have any bearing on the formation of Jammu master plan. The petitioner requested de-sealing of the main gate of premises by the respondents in light of the J and K Civic Laws (Special Provisions) Act 2014 to overcome difficulties being faced by his family members. JNF