Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Feb 23: High Court has recorded that the final decision from an authority must reflect application of mind and disclose reasons with reference to material considered and withstand judicial scrutiny and directed the authorities to de-seal the house of the owner which has been locked on the wrong survey number.
The Division Bench of Justice Sindhu Sharma and Justice Shahzad Azeem said that while practical assistance from subordinate officers is permissible and often necessary in large administrations, a statutory authority cannot abdicate its core decision-making function or act merely as a rubber stamp.
These observations were passed by the bench while allowing an appeal and granting interim protection to a house owner whose residential house had been locked and sealed during eviction proceedings.
The appellant-owner claimed to be a bona fide purchaser of land at Srinagar, having purchased the same in 1996 through a registered sale deed and constructed a residential house after obtaining due permission in 2004.
However, eviction proceedings were initiated against him after a migrant sought protection of his immovable property under the Jammu and Kashmir Migrant Immovable Property (Preservation, Protection and Restraint on Distress Sales) Act on the property in question. Although the appellant was not a party to that petition, administrative orders were passed directing the taking over of possession of land alleged to belong to the migrant.
In an earlier round of litigation, High Court had directed the District Magistrate to grant the appellant a post-decisional hearing, while expressly refraining from adjudicating the merits of the rival claims. After the hearing, the District Magistrate again rejected the appellant’s claim, relying largely on reports of subordinate revenue officials.
Allowing the appeal, the Division Bench noted that the impugned order of the District Magistrate was founded almost entirely on vague and cryptic reports of field officials, with no independent assessment of crucial questions such as whether the land in question was migrant property, whether the appellant’s possession was unauthorized, and how the survey numbers stood altered during settlement operations.
“Practical assistance from subordinates is allowed and is also necessary in large administrations, but the Statutory Authority cannot abdicate its duty or act as a rubber stamp. The final decision must reflect the Authority’s own mind and the Order must ordinarily disclose reasons in reference to the material considered by it to withstand judicial scrutiny”, read the judgment.
The Bench emphasized that core decision-making power, the court cannot be delegated, nor can the authority mechanically adopt subordinate reports without critical scrutiny. Taking note of glaring inconsistencies in the recording of survey numbers across different stages, observing that earlier records indicated one set of new survey numbers after settlement, while the impugned order referred to entirely different numbers without any explanation which the court said, prima facie indicated non-application of mind on part of the statutory authority.
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