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Indian Express
22-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Punjab & Haryana HC terms shifting of RERA HQ to Dharamshala ‘mala fide', slaps Rs 5L fine on govt
Reacting sharply to the state government for shifting the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA)'s headquarters from Shimla to Dharamshala, a division bench of Himachal Pradesh High Court Chief Justice GS Sandhawalia and Justice Ranjan Sharma on Friday termed the move 'mala fide' and slapped a penalty of Rs 5 lakh for failing to appoint the authority's chairman and members despite the necessary process being completed two months ago. The bench also directed, the detailed order released on Saturday, that Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena should 'come present on June 25 if the necessary notifications about the appointments of RERA chairman and members were not issued'. The court directions came during the resumed hearing on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by one Atul Sharma, challenging the extension of Saxena's tenure 'on multiple grounds and the delay in appointing the RERA chairman as well as members'. The order reads, 'It is also to be noticed that in the interim period, after the recommendation sent, the office of RERA has been relocated to Dharamshala on June 13 without even identifying the alternative office place. We are also of the prima facie opinion that the whole purpose of dragging the appointments and shifting the HQ of RERA is with a mala fide purpose, and at this stage, we do not wish to say anything more.' The order further states, 'Necessary notifications shall also be issued regarding the appointments by the said date (June 25), failing which the Chief Secretary shall come present on the said date.' The division bench also reprimanded the state government for dragging its feet in notifying the appointments of the chairperson and members of the HP RERA. The court, while hearing the matter on Friday, observed that the authorities failed to act despite prior directions and imposed a cost of Rs 5,00,000 on the state government for its inaction. The order states, 'The matter was first listed on May 9 when it was brought to the court's attention that respondent No. 3 (Chief Secretary) had applied for the post of Chairperson of HP RERA. During the same hearing, the bench noted that the Registrar General of the High Court had forwarded the recommendations for appointments to the state government on March 13. Despite this, no official notification regarding the appointments had been issued. The court had also taken judicial notice of the numerous representations it received, expressing concern over the prolonged delay in filling these key regulatory positions.' Among the representations placed on record was a letter dated April 16, 2025, from one Sunil Kumar, highlighting the state's inaction. The matter was then adjourned to May 15, with the court directing the Secretary to file an affidavit in light of Rule 18(5) of the Himachal Pradesh Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Rules, 2017, which mandates the selection process be completed in a time-bound manner. On May 26, the court recorded that the affidavit dated May 15, 2025, filed by the Secretary, admitted the state government's obligation to appoint the chairperson and members. However, it was stated that the RERA office had been relocated to Dharamshala, District Kangra, in accordance with a broader policy decision. During the last hearing on June 20, the state government informed the court through a status report that only one member— Vidur Mehta — had been appointed via notification dated June 19, 2025. An affidavit filed on the same date stated that the appointment process for the remaining members and the chairperson was still under consideration. Taking a dim view of the situation, the court observed, 'The above sequence of events shows that the State Government is deliberately delaying the notification of appointments, despite recommendations being made over three months ago.' Consequently, the court imposed a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on the state government, directing that it be deposited in the Registry by June 25, 2025. The bench also ordered that the necessary appointment notifications be issued by the same date. In the event of non-compliance, the Chief Secretary has been directed to appear in person before the court. Senior advocate Peeyush Sharma, representing the petitioner, had told The Indian Express, 'The division bench has firmly instructed the state government to file its replies by June 25. Although the government informed the bench that a HPRERA member was appointed yesterday (Thursday), the bench questioned why the statutory body's chairperson had not been appointed yet, despite the selection committee, headed by the Chief Justice, High Court, already clearing the name.'
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
High court seeks rethink on 60km speed cap on parts of Kiratpur-Manali highway
Kullu: The Himachal Pradesh high court has asked for a rethink on the 60-km speed limit fixed on certain stretches of the Kiratpur-Manali highway, particularly in Bilaspur district of the state, as it is resulting in a large number of speed violations and automatic challaning. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In an order issued on May 20 in an ongoing case, a bench of Chief Justice G S Sandhawalia and Justice Ranjan Sharma observed that the speed limit of 60 km per hour was fixed despite the presence of dividers on the highway. "The speed limit may require a rethink keeping in view the fact that there are dividers as such separating the traffic on the highway. The speed limit is resulting in a large number of traffic violations, especially by tourists heading for Manali," the HC observed. The HC further stated in its order that the speed camera challans are flooding the court as a result of the high number of violations. "A large number of speed challans are flooding the court on account of the automatic camera challan system. This aspect also needs to be examined by the competent authority," stated the bench in its order while impleading Bilaspur superintendent of police as a respondent in the case. The HC's observations came on a petition filed last year by Madan Sharma, general secretary, Fourlane Visthapit and Prabahavit Samiti (FVPS), an organisation that works for the people displaced by highway projects. In his petition, Sharma requested the court's intervention in directing the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to build foot-over-bridges, footpaths, retaining walls, and breast walls on the highway to minimise accidents. Over a dozen speed cameras are installed on the national highway stretch of around 35 km that falls in the Bilaspur district. These cameras, part of the Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS), catch vehicles whose speed exceeds 60 km per hour, and the challans are issued online to violators. As most tourists from outside the state are unaware of the speed limit and the installed cameras, they often end up violating the speed limit unknowingly. However, comparatively, there are very few speed cameras installed on the rest of the around 150-km stretch of the national highway that falls in the Mandi and Kullu districts. MSID:: 121338165 413 |
Hindustan Times
18-05-2025
- General
- Hindustan Times
Set up waste collection system for 3 panchayats: HC to HP govt
{Waste at Chadwick Fall} The Himachal Pradesh high court has asked the government to put in place a waste collection system for three gram panchayats, the waste from which was seen accumulating at tourist spot Chadwick Falls in Summerhill. The panchayats are Neri, Sangti and Chailly. The court passed the order after taking cognisance of a report filed by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA). On May 15, the division bench of chief justice GS Sandhawalia and justice Ranjan Sharma said, 'efforts be made for putting in place the system for waste collection and transportation to MC Plant at Bariyal to maintain the cleanliness to preserve the ecology of the area.' The order comes after the amicus curiae suggested there should be material recovery facility for the solid waste of the three panchayats and system for the garbage to be collected. Amicus curiae, the Latin for friend of the court, refers to someone who is not party to a case but is allowed by the court to provide relevant information. The high court also directed to add Chailly panchayat, adjoining Potters Hill, as a plaintiff. The court directed that Neri and Sangti panchayats ensure daily garbage collection from the residences and put a mechanism in place for the same for the time being. HC directed the Shimla DLSA secretary to conduct inspection on June 30 and file a report by the next date, which has been set for July 7. Chadwick Fall, a seasonal waterfall, is an old tourist spot in Shimla. The high court had taken note of an inspection report of DLSA secretary pointing out there was no appropriate waste disposal facility in the area, suggesting 'severe environmental degradation may take place and cause threat to the ecology of the area.' However, pollution control board's report dated January 23 said water samples taken from the site showed 'no presence of sewage or faecal matter.'
Hindustan Times
15-05-2025
- Health
- Hindustan Times
Himachal HC pulls up state govt over drug menace
In wake of the increasing drug menace Himachal Pradesh high court has pulled up state government for dragging its feet on notifying 'State Policy on Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts'. 'The state shall also inform this court whether the draft of 'State Policy on Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts', which was under consideration at the government level as per the affidavit of the chief secretary on April 20, 2019, has been notified or not?,' said the division bench comprising of chief justice GS Sandhawalia and justice Ranjan Sharma in its May 13 order during resumed hearing of petition on drug menace in state. The high court, as part of a slew of directives, has asked the state government to consider penalising the panchayats that fail to report cannabis cultivation and reward the panchayats that play a proactive role in curbing such cases. Referring to the suggestions of Amicus Curiae, high court has called for active participation of officials of revenue forest and panchayats to check illegal cannabis cultivation. '...involvement of field staff of the revenue and forest departments and panchayat of the concerned villages, has been suggested by casting a primary duty upon them to report any illicit cultivation and on failure on their part, the benefits and schemes made available to the panchayats may be stopped. The officials/staff that takes prompt and effective action to prevent illicit cultivation should be suitably rewarded and similarly incentives should be given to the Panchayats also,' said the order issued on May 13. High court has also directed the state government to submit an affidavit of district-wise NDPS cases registered for the last five years to demonstrate whether the drug menace is decreasing or increasing. High court has also sought a composite affidavit from the state regarding facilities of de-addiction and treatment centres at the district level, along with details of number of rooms which are available and the doctors, as well as supporting staff for the said purpose.
Hindustan Times
13-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
5 months on RERA sans chief; Himachal HC seeks response from state govt
Five months on, the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) of Himachal Pradesh remains without a head as the state government has failed to issue a notification regarding the appointment of its chief and members despite the completion of selection process. Taking cognisance of the issue, the Himachal Pradesh high court has sought affidavit from state government, asking 'specific reason that the state has withheld the recommendations of the selection committee.' 'Keeping in view the larger public interest, if the appointment has not been notified, affidavit be filed as to why it has not been done and what is the specific reason that the state has withheld the recommendations of the selection committee,' said the division bench comprising chief justice GS Sandhawalia and justice Ranjan Sharma on May 9, while directing the state government to file an affidavit on May 15. This comes on the petition filed by Atul Sharma, seeking quashing of extension given to Prabodh Saxena as chief secretary of the state government on the ground that it was given in clear violation of the Central Services Rules and guidelines of department of personnel & training. The petition argued that vigilance clearance cannot be granted to an officer who is an accused in a corruption case under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Saxena was considered front runner for the post of RERA chairperson which had fallen vacant in December last year after retirement of then chairperson Shrikant Baldi. Sources in the government said that the selection committee for the RERA posts, headed by the HP high court chief justice, and the secretary (urban development), and the secretary (law) are its members, had raised objection to Saxena's candidature in wake of the pending case. Saxena faces chargesheet in the infamous INX Media scam, in which then Union finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti are also named as accused. Saxena, between April 2008 and July 2010, served as the director of the department of economic affairs (DEA), which housed the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) that was responsible for approving Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals. The chargesheet in this case has been filed and is pending before the court. The 1990 batch IAS officer, Saxena, who is considered 'close' to chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu was appointed chief secretary on January 1, 2023. Saxena had started as a sub-divisional officer in Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh and went on to become the deputy commissioner of Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, where he gained valuable experience in land revenue management and district administration. He served in the Union ministry of finance between 2008 and 2013. In 2013, he was appointed senior advisor to the executive director of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila, the Philippines, a post he went on to serve till 2016. The latest bill controversy Saxena had come under criticism for passing on the bill amounting to ₹1.22 lakh of a get-together to the government. He had organised a gathering at Holiday Home of Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) property on March 14. The event was attended by around 75 people, including over 20 IAS officers, their spouses and children, and 22 drivers, who were also served lunch. The HPTDC forwarded the bill of ₹1.22 lakh to the general administration department (GAD) for payment. The copy of the bill was circulated on social media. The Bharatiya Janata Party had raised questions. BJP MLA Bikram Singh in a statement had said: 'It is clear that this is a gross violation of democratic spirit, ethical conduct and administrative decorum. When the state is in debt of ₹1 lakh crore, then such events show that the government and bureaucracy have no concern with the problems of the common people.'
