Research › Search › Judgment

J&K High Court · body

2011 DIGILAW 635 (JK)

Sarabjit Singh v. State of J & K

2011-11-17

J.P.SINGH

body2011
Judgment : 1. Government of Jammu and Kashmir in the Revenue Department, cancelled Permanent Resident Certificates of Dharam Chand and his sons Paras Ram, Mangal Ram, Bua Ditta and Dev Raj vide Government order No.Rev/PRC/85 of 2010 dated April 30, 2010. 2. Respondent Nos.3, 4, 7 and 8 approached Judicial Member Bench-II, Jammu and Kashmir Special Tribunal, Jammu who was invested with powers exercisable by Government under Section 6 of the Jammu and Kashmir Grant of Permanent Resident Certificate (Procedure) Act, 1963, vide SRO 399 of October 27, 2010, in Revision, seeking setting aside of the Government Order. 3. Learned Member of the Special Tribunal, the Authorized Officer passed an Interim Order on 9-11-2010 staying the operation of the Government Order. 4. Dr. Sarabijit Singh, on whose complaint, the Permanent Resident Certificates were cancelled, has approached this Court questioning the jurisdiction of the Authorized Officer to entertain respondents’ Revision against Government Order dated April 30, 2010. 5. Heard learned counsel for the parties. 6. Section 6 of the Jammu and Kashmir Grant of Permanent Resident Certificate (Procedure) Act, 1963 vests jurisdiction and power in the Government to call for the records of any case pending before, or disposed of, by the Competent Authority, and uphold and revise orders of the Competent Authority or give any directions as it may deem fit. 7. The powers vested in the Government under Section 6 of the Act may be exercised by any Officer authorized in this behalf by the Government in terms of Section 8 of the Act. 8. Vide SRO 399 of October 27, 2010, the Government, in exercise of its powers under Section 8, and in supersession of SRO 40 dated February 27, 2009, delegated its powers under Section 6 of the Act to S/Sh. Hari Om Singh, Judicial Member Bench-II, Jammu and Kashmir Special Tribunal, Jammu and Sayed Farooq, Judicial Member bench-II, Jammu and Kashmir Special Tribunal, Srinagar. 9. In terms of Section 6 of the Act, powers of Revision may be exercised by Government or its delegatee against orders passed by, or in respect of proceedings pending before the “Competent Authority”. 10. This Section, looked from any angle, does not permit exercise of Revisional jurisdiction in respect of the orders passed by Government itself, for, the Revisional powers are contemplated for its exercise only against the orders and proceedings of the Competent Authority, i.e. Authority subordinate to the Government. 10. This Section, looked from any angle, does not permit exercise of Revisional jurisdiction in respect of the orders passed by Government itself, for, the Revisional powers are contemplated for its exercise only against the orders and proceedings of the Competent Authority, i.e. Authority subordinate to the Government. 11. In this view of the matter, the Authorized Officer had no jurisdiction to entertain respondents’ Revision against the Government Order. 12. The interim order passed by the learned Authorized Officer on 9-11-2010 in the Revision cannot, therefore, be sustained. 13. This Writ Petition, accordingly, succeeds and is, therefore, allowed dismissing respondents Revision before the Authorized Officer against Government order No.Rev/PRC/85 of 2010 dated April 30, 2010 and quashing all proceedings taken thereon. 14. Dismissal of respondents Revision before the Authorized Officer shall not, however, operate as impediment for them to have resort to other remedies, which may be available to them, under law, to question the Government order. Petition allowed.