Controversy over allotment of land for temple

Kuldip Bhatia

Ludhiana, February 26

A chunk of prime land measuring 3,176 sq yards in posh Sarabha Nagar Colony – developed by the Ludhiana Improvement Trust (LIT), allotted to the Nav Durga Mandir Committee (NDMC) way back in 1970, has generated a controversy. One of the office-bearers of the said committee (and original allottee of the land) has alleged that the building, property and ‘golak’ of Shri Durga Mata Mandir were usurped by an illegally constituted Trust.

In a legal notice served to the State of Punjab through its Chief Secretary, LIT Chairman and the Municipal Corporation (MC) Commissioner, the LIT officials have also been charged with being a party to the conspiracy under which the title deed of the said land was got registered in the name of ‘Nav Durga Mandir Trust (NDMT)’ in August 2015 against all rules and regulations, legal advice and on the basis of false and vexatious affidavits filed by the NDMT through its president Subhash Duggal.

The notice served by advocate KR Sikri, on behalf of BR Katna, NDMC vice-president, says that Subhash Duggal, who was elected president of the committee in November 1991 for a period of one year, did not hold any elections or general body meeting thereafter, and in January 1998, managed to set up a Trust (NDMT), which was, however, registered in the year 2005-06.

It has been alleged by Katna that the said Trust comprised quite a few family members of Duggal and KK Seth, who was nominated the life-time chairman of the Trust.

“The MC had rightly rejected a building plan for the extension of the temple building and application for grant of NOC on the ground that the land was owned by the Committee and not the Trust. But strangely, the LIT officials went ahead with registration of a sale deed in the name of NDMT in 2015 under a deep-rooted conspiracy,” says the notice.

The legal notice has called upon the State of Punjab and the LIT Chairman to quash the sale deed of the said land executed in the name of NDMT on February 28, 2015, and mutation no. 33,605 dated September 16, 2015, and all consequent proceedings initiated thereafter, within a period of two months from the date of receipt of the notice and restore physical possession of land, building constructed thereon, along with entire record and ‘golak’ of the temple, failing which the aggrieved Committee (NDMC) would file a suit seeking relief and justice.

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