Eligibility determination under PMAY-G must adhere to prescribed guidelines; reopening inquiries based on private complaints without due process undermines applicant rights and the legitimacy of the established beneficiary listing.

JUDGMENT :

SASHIKANTA MISHRA, J.

Both the writ applications involve common questions of fact and law and being heard together are disposed of by this common judgment.

2. The Government of India floated a scheme called Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) for providing funding benefits to eligible beneficiaries for construction of Pucca houses. The scheme was intended for those households who had Katcha houses. The Director, Special Projects, Government of Odisha, vide circular dated 12.01.2023 instructed all the Collectors to ensure wide publicity and display of list of provisionally sanctioned beneficiaries out of Awaas + list.

3. The petitioners are residents of Gopinathpur Gram Panchayat under Chandbali Block in Bhadrak district. They claim to be eligible for benefits under the scheme. Pursuant to the circular issued by the Director, Special Projects, a block level inquiry team was formed for each Gram Panchayat, pursuant to which a probable beneficiary list containing 291 beneficiaries of Gopinathpur Gram Panchayat was published on 16.01.2023. Objections were invited from the public from 16.01.2023 to 24.01.2023. Certain objections were received from the public regarding the inclusion of ineligible beneficiaries, for which a team formed at the block level conducted an inquiry. In the inquiry, 33 beneficiaries were found ineligible, while the remaining 258 were found eligible. The matter was therefore placed before the Gram Sabha of Gopinathpur Gram Panchayat held on 30.01.2023, which approved the list of 258 eligible beneficiaries. The names of the petitioners of both the writ applications found place in the said list. Work orders were issued to the beneficiaries, including the petitioners on 19.06.2023. The first installment amounting to Rs. 40,000/- was released in favour of some of the petitioners but the remaining installments were withheld. When the petitioners approached the authorities for the release of the first installment/subsequent installments they were informed that the same had been withheld on the basis of a written complaint submitted by one Malatilata Sahoo and others of the locality on 27.06.2023. The said complaint was with regard to inclusion of purportedly ineligible beneficiaries in the list. According to the petitioners, the complaint submitted by Malatilata Sahoo and others, copy of which has been obtained by them under the RTI Act was based on false and misleading statements and by using forged signatures. A grievance petition was therefore submitted to the BDO as well as the IIC, Chandabali Police Station by the members of the public against said Malatilata Sahoo. However, ignoring the grievance raised by the public, a second inquiry was conducted and a report was submitted on 07.07.2023, wherein the petitioners were held ineligible for the benefits and in case of the petitioners in favour of whom the first installment had been sanctioned, orders were issued directing them to refund the said amount.

4. On such facts, the petitioners have filed these writ applications impugning the second inquiry report as also the notice issued for refunding the first installment benefits and freezing of the bank accounts and have prayed to issue directions to the authorities to issue work orders/release subsequent installments.

5. The stand of the State Government, as reflected in the counter affidavit and additional affidavit filed in W.P.(C). No. 25632 of 2023 (adopted in W.P.(C) No. 29123 of 2023) is that the petitioners were declared as eligible beneficiaries through proper process. As per the inquiry conducted after field verification, the genuinely eligible beneficiaries were included in the selection list, while others w