The Delhi High Court has recently issued a contempt verdict against senior officials of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for failing to comply with court orders in a contentious land allotment case.
The case revolves around a petitioner who sought a fresh plot allocation in Vikas Puri following legal complications over a previously allotted plot to her deceased husband. In a ruling dated February 4, 2019, the High Court directed the DDA to allocate an unencumbered plot in Rohini to the petitioner. Despite the court’s clear directive, the DDA did not execute the conveyance deed as instructed on July 11, 2022. Instead, the authority sought to renegotiate the terms, citing discrepancies in valuation between the original plot in Vikas Puri and the alternative plot in Rohini. The court condemned the DDA’s actions, highlighting them as deliberate disobedience of its directives. The Vice Chairman and Deputy Director (Land Disposal) of the DDA were specifically named in the contempt ruling, which emphasized the authority’s duty to uphold court orders without deviation.
In its detailed order, the court underscored that the DDA’s refusal to execute the conveyance deed in compliance with previous rulings undermined the integrity of judicial authority. The court further criticized the authority’s attempt to backtrack on its commitment to allot the petitioner a plot in Rohini, despite having acknowledged the petitioner’s legal entitlement and having already delivered possession. The contempt verdict includes a notice summoning the implicated DDA officials to appear before the court personally and provide reasons for their defiance of judicial orders. This legal action underscores the judiciary’s commitment to enforcing accountability and ensuring adherence to legal mandates, particularly in matters concerning public entities and citizen rights. The case has drawn attention to procedural integrity within administrative bodies like the DDA, highlighting the imperative for transparent and lawful conduct in land allotment and other public functions. As the proceedings continue, stakeholders and legal experts await further developments that could impact administrative practices and judicial oversight in land allocation disputes across Delhi.
