Sudhir Gahlot v. South Delhi Municipal Corporation & Anr.

1. Allowed, subject to all just exceptions.

2. The application stands disposed of. W.P.(C) 6059/2022

1. The present petition has been filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India on behalf of the petitioner seeking direction to respondent No. 1 to stop the unauthorized construction being carried out in the property bearing No. C-9, Om Vihar, Gulab Bagh, Main Najafgarh Road, Opp, Metro Pillar No. 702, near Miglani Paint and Hardware store, Uttam Nagar, New Delhi (hereinafter, referred to as the „subject property‟) by respondent No. 2. The petitioner has further sought necessary directions for sealing and demolition of the alleged unauthorized construction carried out in the subject property. 2022:DHC:1355 Digitally W.P.(C) 6059/2022 Page 2of 4

2. The petitioner has claimed himself to be a resident of area near the subject property. It is admitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the petitioner neither has any connection with the subject property nor is an immediate neighbor of resident thereof. It is also admitted that neither the petitioner’s easement rights nor ingress/egress are affected by any alleged construction activity carried out by respondent No. 2 in the subject property.

3. Learned counsel appearing for the respondent/Corporation has taken a preliminary objection to the maintainability of the writ petition, alleging that the same is a motivated one.

4. On a specific query, learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the instant petition is the first of its kind to have been filed on behalf of the petitioner.

5. I have heard learned counsels for the parties as well as perused the material placed on record.

6. There is no gainsaying that a petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India lies only for enforcement of a fundamental or legal right.

7. Notably, a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Rajendra Motwani & Anr. v. MCD & Ors. reported as 2017 SCC OnLine Del 11050 has held as follows:-

8. Recently, in Pawan Kumar Saraswat v. North Delhi Municipal Corporation and Others reported as 2021 SCC OnLine Del 4530, another Co-ordinate Bench of this Court took note of a petition filed under Article Digitally W.P.(C) 6059/2022 Page 3of 4 226 of the Constitution of India, invoking extraordinary jurisdiction of this Court for relief such as the one sought in the present petition. The learned Judge observed as follows:-

9. In the present case, the petitioner admittedly does not have any connection with the property in question. He is stated to have come across the alleged unauthorized construction at the subject property while he was passing through the area. The petitioner has further failed to show as to which fundamental or legal right of his is being affected by any alleged construction activity carried out in the subject property. It is quite apparent that the present petition has not been filed for enforcement of any fundamental or legal right, but rather for some motivated reasons.

10. In this backdrop, this Court is not inclined to exercise its power under Article 226 of the Constitution of India to grant the relief sought by the petitioner.

11. At this stage, learned counsel for the petitioner, on instructions, submits that the petitioner is ready and willing to deposit a sum of Rs.10,000/-.