The Maintenance Tribunal holds the jurisdiction to issue eviction orders under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, superseding the District Magistrate's authority in such matters.

JUDGMENT :

Vikas Bahl, J. (Oral)

This is a Civil Writ Petition filed under Article 226/227 of the Constitution of India for the issuance of a writ in the nature of certiorari for quashing of order dated 09.04.2021 (Annexure P-6) passed by the District Magistrate, Hisar-respondent No.1, whereby prayer for evicting the house has been dismissed.

2. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of respondent-State has submitted that in view of the judgment passed by a Coordinate Bench of this Court in CWP=4744=2018titledas' Simrat Randhawa Vs. State of Punjab and others ', the District Magistrate does not have the power to pass the order of eviction under Section 22 of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 (hereinafter to be referred as 'the 2007 Act') and as per the latest instructions dated 29.11.2023 issued by the Director General, Social Justice, Empowerment, Welfare of SCs & BCs and Antyodaya (SEWA) Department, Haryana, Chandigarh, it is the Maintenance Tribunal which has the power to pass the order of eviction in view of Section 23 of the 2007 Act. It is further submitted that the said instructions have been issued keeping in view the law laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in case titled as 'S.Vanitha Vs. The Deputy Commissioner Bengaluru Urban District & ors. 'reported as 2021(15) SCC 730 and thus, the District Magistrate, after passing of the judgment in Simrat Randhawa's case (Supra), would not have the jurisdiction to pass the order of eviction. Relevant portion of the said instructions is reproduced hereinbelow:-

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With reference to your D.O. No.3679 dated 23.04.2023 on subject cited above, it is submitted that the Hon'ble High Court, passing the orders dated 29.11.2023 in the subject captioned writ petition, raised some queries on the following points:

i) Whether after passing of the judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Smt. S.Vanitha's case (supra) and of this Court in Ravi Kumar's case (supra), which has been upheld by the Hon'ble Division Bench of this Court in LPA-1387-2023, the authorities are still not passing orders in cases wherein prayer for eviction has been made and if so, the reasons for the same.

ii) Whether the letter (Annexure P-9) issued by the Director General, Social Justice, Empowerment, Welfare of SC & BC and Antyodaya (SEWA) Department, Haryana has any legal basis or not.

iii) Whether, irrespective of the position of law, since it is the duty of the authority under the Act to pass an order and not to simply keep an application seeking eviction pending, then as to why the authority concerned has not passed an order on the same?

With regard to this, it is submitted that the Government of India had enacted the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 . The erstwhile Social Justice & Empowerment Department was a nodal department to implement the provisions of the said Act. The erstwhile Social Justice & Empowerment Department. being a nodal department, notified the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Rules, 2009. The State Government, through the erstwhile Social Justice & Empowerment Department, introduced an Action Plan, 2015 vide which the District Magistrates in the State of Haryana were empowered to pass the eviction orders to protect the property of the senior citizens/parents. The State Government vide notification dated 01.01.2023 merged the Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes Department with the erstwhile Social Justice & Empowerment Department and name of the erstwhile Social Justice & Empowerment Department has been substituted with the Social Justice, Empowerment, Welfare of Scheduled Caste and Backward Classes and Antyodaya (SEWA) Department, Haryana. Further, the point-wise response of the said queries is herein under:-

i) It is submitted that as p