HC notice to Punjab Govt on village’s plea for release of auction money

Phagwara, May 24

The Punjab and Haryana High Court today issued a notice of motion to the state of Punjab returnable by August 16 on a petition seeking direction to the government to deposit the contract amount to Gag Dhagara village along with interest of 9 per cent.

A Division Bench, comprising Justices Sureshwar Thakur and Kuldeep Singh, passed this order on an execution appeal filed by Gag Dhagara village panchayat. Village sarpanch Banat Kaur filed an execution appeal in the court submitting that the former sarpanches had filed a civil writ petition in the High Court in 2015 seeking directions to a private contractor to deposit the balance amount of the contract money with the panchayat.

She said in her appeal that then Justices Surya Kant and PB Bajanthri, disposing of the petition, had said in their judgment on February 2, 2016, that the needful, including the determination of the amount payable by the private contractor, should be done within three months. It had directed the Mining Department to deduct the amount from the security deposit and release the gram panchayat’s share within a month. The sarpanch submitted that an amount of Rs 1,48,15,757 was deducted by the Mining Department from the security deposit of the contractor. The sarpanch further submitted that the Mining Department had auctioned the village mining quarry in 2013, which continued operations until 2015. She has urged the High Court to direct the state to release the amount in favour of the gram panchayat with an interest of 9 per cent.

Rs 1.48 cr not paid to Gag Dhagara since 2013

The gram panchayat of Gag Dhagara village has sought the release of Rs 1,48,15,757 generated from the auction of the village mining quarry in 2013. It has also sought an interest of nine per cent on the said amount