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S.D Bandi v. Divisional Traffic Officer, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, And Others
Factual and Procedural Background
The Supreme Court is monitoring widespread unauthorised occupation of government bungalows and apartments in several jurisdictions. Pursuant to earlier directions, the States of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh filed fresh status reports detailing the number of unauthorised occupants, the extent to which premises have now been vacated, and the categories of persons still in possession. The Court found the information incomplete and issued further directives, including the filing of detailed affidavits, issuance of show-cause notices to present and past occupants, and the scheduling of follow-up hearings. The Union of India was also directed to submit a report concerning unauthorised occupation of central government accommodation.
Legal Issues Presented
The opinion addresses a procedural matter and does not frame distinct legal issues.
Table of Precedents Cited
No precedents were cited in the provided opinion.
Court's Reasoning and Analysis
The Court relied on the factual disclosures in the status reports to craft remedial directions rather than engaging in substantive legal interpretation. Its analysis proceeded in the following steps:
- Assessment of Compliance: The Court compared prior orders with the information supplied by each State. It noted partial compliance—209 out of 250 unauthorised occupants in Bihar had vacated, and various categories of occupants in Uttar Pradesh had either vacated late or refused to vacate at all.
- Identification of Deficiencies: Bihar’s affidavit lacked details on the remaining 41 occupants and on recovery of penal rent. Uttar Pradesh’s report omitted the legal basis for regularising or reallocating premises and the current status of eviction proceedings.
- Mandate for Comprehensive Affidavits: Each State must file a further affidavit specifying:
- Names, addresses, case numbers, and procedural status for every unauthorised occupant.
- Duration of unauthorised occupation and computation of rent or penal rent payable.
- Potential criminal liability under the Public Premises Act, the Penal Code, or other laws.
- Whether disciplinary action under service rules should be initiated against delinquent public servants or judicial officers.
- Details of any premises re-allotted or regularised, together with the governing rules.
- Issuance of Notices: Show-cause notices are to be served on (a) the 41 current occupants and 209 late vacators in Bihar; (b) judicial officers, legislators, departmental officers, and other persons listed in Uttar Pradesh’s annexures who either remain in occupation or vacated belatedly; and (c) the Allahabad High Court with respect to judicial officer protection orders.
- Future Monitoring: Specific return dates—10 October 2006 for Bihar and 7 November 2006 for Uttar Pradesh—were fixed for further consideration. The Union of India must also report within six weeks. An amicus curiae was appointed to assist the Court.
Holding and Implications
ORDER: The Court directed the States of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, as well as the Union of India, to file comprehensive affidavits within four to six weeks, issued show-cause notices to hundreds of identified unauthorised occupants, and scheduled follow-up hearings.
Implications: The order signals the Court’s intolerance toward prolonged unlawful occupation of public property and foreshadows potential civil recovery, criminal prosecution, and departmental action against offenders, including judicial officers. While no new legal doctrine was announced, the decision exerts strong supervisory pressure on executive authorities to enforce existing statutes and service rules.
Order
Re: State of Bihar
1. As directed by us, today latest status report, which is taken on record, has been filed on behalf of the State of Bihar, duly signed by the learned Standing Counsel for the Government of Bihar and along with that copy of affidavit duly sworn before the Patna High Court by the Estate Officer, Department of Building Construction, Government of Bihar has been enclosed in which it has been stated that there were 250 unauthorised occupants in government bungalows/apartments within the State capital out of whom 209 have vacated the same and 41 unauthorised occupants are still there. It has not been stated as to what steps have been taken for eviction of those 41 unauthorised occupants.
2. Let the Estate Officer file an affidavit before this Court stating therein as to what is the position of those 41 bungalows/apartments, in which there are unauthorised occupants whose names and addresses should be mentioned, whether any case has been filed, if so, number of the case, name of the authority/court, position of the case, whether ready for hearing and within what time the same is likely to be disposed of and if final order passed, and appeal/revision provided and filed. Apart from this, affidavit must also state as to whether 209 bungalows/apartments which have been vacated by unauthorised occupants have been allotted to any person and if so allotted their names, designation and entitlement under the relevant rules.
3. Affidavit shall further state clearly for what period 209 persons remained in unauthorised occupation and what is the amount of rent/penal rent, etc. the State is entitled to realise from them by deducting every month from their salary or post-retirement benefits or pension or attaching their deposits or by attachment and sale of their properties in accordance with the provisions of the relevant Public Demands Recovery Act. It should also be stated in the affidavit as to whether by not vacating the government accommodation such unauthorised occupants incur any criminal liability under the Public Premises Act or the Penal Code or any other law for the time being in force so that in case any such liability is incurred, directions may be given to launch criminal prosecution against them by filing complaint in court. Further affidavit shall state as to why the appropriate Government/Authority/Body/High Court be not directed to consider the desirability of initiating proceeding under the relevant service rules and suspend the unauthorised occupants which includes judicial officers in contemplation of departmental proceeding as such conduct of theirs is unbecoming of judicial officers/government servants and in future also, no sooner occupation of a person becomes unauthorised, such action be taken immediately.
4. The 41 unauthorised occupants shall also be dealt with in the manner indicated in the above para 3.
5. Four weeks' time is granted to the State of Bihar to file affidavit in relation to the matters enumerated in the foregoing paragraphs.
6. Issue notices to the said 41 persons through the Estate Officer, Government of Bihar to show cause as to why the measures enumerated in para 3 above be not taken against them and they be not directed to be evicted forthwith from the premises in their occupation irrespective of any order passed by any authority or court in India excepting this Court.
7. Also issue notices in the like manner to 209 persons, who have vacated much after the due date, as to why the measures enumerated in para 3 above be not taken against them. In all the notices issued to the persons mentioned in this para as well as para 6 above, names and addresses of the unauthorised occupants shall be filled up by the Estate Officer aforesaid and thereafter steps shall be taken by the Estate Officer for immediately serving the same upon them.
8. Put up the matter on 10-10-2006 for consideration of the matter in relation to the State of Bihar.
Re: State of Uttar Pradesh
9. As directed on the last date, on 28-8-2006 a status report, on oath, duly sworn by Joint Secretary (Estates), Government of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, has been filed in which it has been stated that ten judicial officers of Uttar Pradesh Higher Judicial Service whose names have been enumerated in Annexure A-1 vacated the government bungalows/apartments in some cases after several months, and in some, after one and a half year from the due date. Likewise, few other judicial officers or their wives vacated the government accommodation much after the due date (names of such officers have been mentioned in Annexure A-4). It has been then stated that six judicial officers (names mentioned in Annexures A-2 and A-3) belonging to Uttar Pradesh Higher Judicial Service as well as Subordinate Service, who at one point of time were posted at Lucknow and allotted government bungalows/apartments there, though transferred to other stations but failed to vacate the accommodation provided to them at Lucknow. It is misfortune of the country that for vacation of quarter from judicial officers, the State Government was required to initiate proceeding for eviction under the Public Premises Act. From Annexures A-2 and A-3 it appears that proceedings had to be taken against those judicial officers for their eviction and they are fighting the same like veteran litigants instead of gracefully vacating the government bungalows/apartments and surprisingly they are getting protection from the District Judges as well as the Allahabad High Court by staying their eviction. Apart from this, one Ashok Kumar Singh, who was the Additional District Judge was posted at one point of time in Lucknow, though died, but the bungalow as mentioned in Annexure A-3 which is in occupation of his family members has not been vacated after the due date i.e 27-4-2006. The Registrar General of the Allahabad High Court shall find out as to who are the heirs of late Shri Ashok Kumar Singh (named in Annexure A-3), who are in occupation of the accommodation.
10. Issue notices to the aforesaid five persons (named in Annexures A-2 and A-3) and heirs of Shri Ashok Kumar through the Registrar General to show cause as to why the measures enumerated in para 3 above be not taken against them and they be not directed to be evicted forthwith from the premises in their occupation irrespective of any order passed by any authority or court in India excepting this Court.
11. Also issue notices to the persons enumerated in Annexures A-1 and A-4, who have vacated the government accommodation much after the due date through the Registrar General, to show cause as to why the measures enumerated in para 3 above be not taken against them. The Registrar General will see that present addresses of the judicial officers referred to in paras 10 and 11 are filled up in the notices and the same are duly served upon them.
12. Issue notice to the Allahabad High Court through its Registrar to show cause why measures enumerated in para 3 above be not taken against the delinquent judicial officers.
13. So far as the legislature is concerned, total 135 persons, were in unauthorised occupation, out of whom, a list of 50 persons has been enumerated (vide Annexure A-5), out of which 15 persons have already vacated, though much after due date, and so far as the remaining 35 persons are concerned, either the bungalows/apartments have been reallotted or allotments made in their favour have been regularised. So far as 85 unauthorised occupants (Annexure A-6) and 4 unauthorised occupants (Annexure A-7) of the bungalows/apartments which are in the pool of State Legislature, it has been stated that those unauthorised occupants have not vacated the government accommodation as yet, in spite of letters written on various dates for initiation of eviction proceeding.
14. It has been stated that out of 214 unauthorised occupants of bungalows/apartments (vide Annexure A-8), 18 persons have vacated and regarding 196 persons either they have been regularised or upon reposting at Lucknow, allotments have been made in their favour.
15. Apart from this, it has been further stated in the affidavit that out of 30 persons, details of whom have been enumerated in Annexure A-9, and 56 persons, detailed in Annexure A-10, all are in unauthorised occupation and against all of them proceedings have been taken, but they have not vacated the government accommodation so far.
16. It has been stated in the affidavit that 71 persons in unauthorised occupation of government bungalows/apartments are either NGOs or non-government persons or journalists or other persons and they have not vacated the government accommodation, details whereof have been enumerated in Annexure A-11.
17. Lastly it has been stated in the affidavit that officers of different departments of the Government were unauthorisedly occupying the government bungalows/apartments, some of whom have vacated and some are still occupying, details of which are given hereunder:
Sl. No. Name of the department No. of unauthorised occupants No. of persons vacated No. of persons whose allotment regularised/reallotted No. of unauthorised occupants at present 1. Public Works (Annexures A-12 to A-14) 52 10 17 25 45 (fresh) 2. Police (Annexures A-15 to A-17) 452 177 45 230 314 3. Civil Aviation (Annexures A-18 and A-19) 2 1 - 1 4. Irrigation (Annexures A-20 to A-22) 35 11 13 11 13 (fresh)
5. Animal Husbandry (Annexures A-23 and A-24) 11 1 5 5 6. Forest (Annexures A-25 to A-27) 11 5 2 4 7. Jail (Annexures A-28 to A-30) 18 7 9 2 8 (fresh)
18. Issue notices to those persons, enumerated in Annexures A-5 to A-30, who have not vacated the accommodation, through the Joint Secretary (Estates), Government of Uttar Pradesh, to show cause as to why the measures enumerated in para 3 above be not taken against them and they be not directed to be evicted forthwith from the premises in their occupation irrespective of any order passed by any authority or court in India excepting this Court.
19. Also issue notices in the like manner to those persons, enumerated in Annexures A-5 to A-30 who have vacated government accommodation after due date, to show cause as to why measures as provided in para 3 above be not taken against them. The said Joint Secretary shall see that present addresses of all the persons mentioned in paras 17 and 18 are filled up in the notices and the same are duly served upon them.
20. In the affidavit to be filed on behalf of the State of Uttar Pradesh details of the persons (with their names and addresses), whose allotments have been regularised or who have been reallotted, shall be disclosed stating therein relevant rules under which the said power has been exercised. Upon consideration of the affidavit further order shall be passed in relation to such persons.
21. In the affidavit details of all the quarters, which according to the present affidavit have been vacated, should be enumerated and further details of the persons to whom such accommodations allotted and the relevant rules whereunder allotment has been made shall be furnished.
22. Affidavit shall also state stand of the State in relation to measures enumerated in para 3 above against the unauthorised occupants.
23. Affidavit in relation to all the above matters shall be filed on behalf of the State of Uttar Pradesh within a period of six weeks from today.
24. Put up the matter on 7-11-2006 for further consideration in relation to the State of Uttar Pradesh.
25. Copies of this order shall be sent along with all the notices issued pursuant to this order.
26. The Union of India is also directed to file affidavit within six weeks in relation to the measures enumerated in para 3 above against the unauthorised occupants of the government accommodation.
27. Let name of Ms Anjani Aiyangari, learned counsel be also shown as amicus curiae and complete set of papers be provided to her.
28. Let copies of this order be made over to the learned Additional Solicitor General, Standing Counsel for the State of Bihar, learned counsel for the State of Uttar Pradesh and Shri Ranjit Kumar, Senior Advocate.
Court Masters
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