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IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA

AT CHANDIGARH

105-1 CWP-11774-2026

Date of Decision : May 14, 2026

BRAHAM SINGH ALIAS BUNTY -PETITIONER

V/S

DISTRICT MAGISTRATE AND ORS. -RESPONDENTS

CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE KULDEEP TIWARI

Present: Mr. Ravi Malik, Advocate, and

Mr. Anil Chahal, Advocate

for the petitioner.

Mr. Bhupender Singh, Addl. A.G., Haryana.

None for the respondent No.3.

***

KULDEEP TIWARI, J. (ORAL)

1. Through the instant writ petition, the petitioner impugns the

orders dated 21.03.2023 and 02.12.2025, passed respectively by the

Maintenance Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal.

2. It is apposite to record at the outset that, despite respondent

No.3 having been served dasti, there is no representation on her behalf. A

photocopy of the dasti service report, as furnished by learned counsel for the

petitioner, is taken on record, accordingly proceeded ex parte.

3. Succinctly stated, respondent No.3 instituted an application

under the provisions of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior

Citizens Act, 2007 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act of 2007”) before the

Maintenance Tribunal, seeking eviction of the petitioner and proforma

respondents No.4 to 6 from the house in question, as well as maintenance @

₹12,000/- per month. Vide order dated 21.03.2023, the Maintenance

DEVINDER YADAV

2026.05.19 09:35

I attest to the accuracy and

authenticity of this

order/judgment

CWP-11774-2026 2

Tribunal allowed the application and directed the petitioner and proforma

respondents No.4 to 6 to vacate the house in question within 30 days. The

eviction order dated 21.03.2023 caused pain to the petitioner and proforma

respondent No.6 and propelled them to institute a statutory appeal before the

Appellate Tribunal, which was dismissed vide order dated 02.12.2025.

Thus, having remained unsuccessful before the Appellate Tribunal, the

petitioner has approached this Court assailing the orders (supra).

4. At the outset, learned counsel for the petitioner draws the

attention of this Court to Haryana Government’s notification dated

08.12.2020, prescribing the composition of the Maintenance Tribunals and

Appellate Tribunals, to submit that the impugned order dated 21.03.2023

suffers from illegality, having been passed coram non judice. It is submitted

that under the notification (supra), both the Maintenance Tribunal and the

Appellate Tribunal are required to comprise three members, with the Sub-

Divisional Magistrate and the Deputy Commissioner/District Magistrate

acting as their respective Chairmen. In the present case, however, the

impugned order dated 21.03.2023 was passed solely by the Sub-Divisional

Magistrate. Therefore, the said order was rendered without the mandated

coram, rendering it illegal and without jurisdiction. In support of this

contention, reliance is placed on the judgment dated 26.10.2016 rendered

by a Coordinate Bench of this Court in CWP No.18784 of 2015, the relevant

paragraph whereof is extracted hereunder:

“I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the

record with able assistance and am of the considered opinion that

the impugned order passed by the Appellate Authority is patently

without jurisdiction because as per the Scheme of the Act, the

Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal are constituted by the State

DEVINDER YADAV

2026.05.19 09:35

I attest to the accuracy and

authenticity of this

order/judgment

CWP-11774-2026 3

Government by way of notification and the appeal has to be decided

by the duly constituted Tribunal. In the present case, notification

dated 10.12.2012 has been relied upon to which there is no contrary

notification produced before this Court. In this notification, the

Tribunal has been specifically constituted for Kurukshetra in which

there are three Members. District Magistrate may be the Chairman

of the Tribunal but once there is a Tribunal of three Members, the

District Magistrate has no jurisdiction to take decision alone and

the decision has to be taken unanimously or by way of majority.

Therefore, on this ground al