CHANDIGARH, April 14: — The Punjab and Haryana High Court has held that courts can examine whether principles of fairness and transparency were upheld in matters involving allotment of public property, even if the dispute pertains to a society registered under the Societies Registration Act.
A Bench comprising Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Vikas Suri ruled that while disputes relating to the rules or bye-laws of the Haryana Employees Welfare Organisation (HEWO) should ordinarily be resolved through arbitration under the Haryana Registration and Regulation of Societies Act, 2012, the court could still invoke its writ jurisdiction when public property is involved.
The ruling came on a petition filed by Dinesh Kumar, who challenged the allotment and regularisation of Super Deluxe flats in a HEWO scheme to two senior officials, including the then Managing Director. He alleged that the flat was allotted in violation of eligibility norms, claiming that the MD had not completed the requisite six-month deputation period and the second official drew a lower pay scale.
The State argued that Kumar had access to an alternate and effective remedy before the Registrar of Societies, which he had failed to pursue.
However, the court found that there was no procedural impropriety or mala fide in the allotment. It observed that the flat had become available only after surrender by a previous allottee and was re-allotted in line with amended rules giving preference to governing body members. No evidence of undue favour was found.
The court also noted that the petitioner had participated in the draw but failed to secure a flat. “He cannot now question a process he voluntarily entered,” the Bench remarked.
