JUDGMENT :

V. RAMASUBRAMANIAN, J.

1. The State of Haryana and the Town Planning Authorities have come up with the present appeal against the judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh setting aside two notifications, one dated 11.07.2002 issued under the Punjab Scheduled Roads and Controlled Areas Restriction of Unregulated Development Act, 1963 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Controlled Areas Act’) and the other dated 31.12.2002, issued under the Haryana Development and Regulation of Urban Areas Act, 1975 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Urban Development Act’) and also setting aside all consequential actions.

2. We have heard Mr. Gurinder Singh Gill, learned senior counsel appearing for the State, Shri Abhinav Agnihotri, learned counsel appearing for the 1st Respondent and Mr. Ghashyam Das Sharma, learned counsel appearing for newly impleaded parties.

3. The 1st Respondent herein filed a writ petition in W.P. No. 2437 of 2003, on the file of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh contending inter-alia:

(i) that with a view to set up a residential colony in the villages of Naggal and Alipur, District Panchkula, they entered into two agreements, one dated 28.08.2001 for the purchase of 211 kanals and 10 marlas of land and another dated 16.10.2001 for the purchase of another 72 kanals and 5 marlas of land.

(ii) that pursuant to the aforesaid agreements the land owners also registered three sale deeds in their favour, one dated 16.05.2002 selling and conveying land of an extent of 194 kanals and 18 marlas, the second dated 16.05.2002 selling and conveying land of an extent of 16 kanals and 12 marlas and the third dated 30.05.2002 selling and conveying land measuring 112 kanals and 4 marlas.

(iii) that even before the execution of the sale deeds but after the agreements of sale, they got the layout plan prepared, carved out roads, laid sewerage and water supply lines, erected electricity poles and demarcated the plots for sale.

(iv) that the booking of plots by the allottees started on 24.10.2001 and closed on 24.12.2001.

(v) that during the said period they received about 565 applications from prospective buyers along with the prescribed earnest money through the Allahabad Bank.

(vi) that after the scrutiny of the applications, more than 500 plots were allotted up to March 2002.

(vii) that one of the allottees of a plot even submitted an application to the Director of Town and Country Planning, for the issue of a No Objection Certificate, for raising construction.

(viii) that the District Town Planner, Panchkula, issued a reply to the said allottee on 06.05.2002 informing the allottee that the plot was outside the controlled area.

(ix) that after they started the process of development of the colony, the land use and its character completely changed.

(x) that after seeing that the colony was gaining popularity, attracting a huge rush of people wanting to buy plots, the Government issued a notification with ulterior motive under Section 4 of the Controlled Areas Act, declaring the area to be a controlled area.

(xi) that thereafter they received a show cause notice dated 26.07.2002 alleging contravention of the provisions of Section 7 of the Controlled Areas Act.

(xii) that though they submitted a reply to the show cause notice on 02.08.2002, an order overruling the objections was passed on 08.08.2002.

(xiii) that on 18.08.2002, the officials from the Office of the District Town Planner came to the site and caused damage to the roads, sewerage pipes and electricity poles.

(xiv) that therefore they filed a statutory appeal under Section 12C(3) of the Controlled Areas Act before the Tribunal.

(xv) that by an order dated 28.01.2003, the Tribunal dismissed the appeal.

(xvi) that when the appeal before the Tribunal was pending, the Government issued another notification dated 31.12.2002 under Section 2(o) of the Urban Development Act.

(xvii) that the said notification was published in Government Gazett