Dist Court cannot hear petitions of three defaulting NGOs:HC

New Delhi, Dec 14 (UNI) Taking serious view of the facts that three NGOs approached the District Courts for desealing of their premises in the Qutab Instititional areas, the Delhi High Court today said the lower court did not have the authority to hear the matter when the higher court was seized of the matter.

A division bench of Chief Justice M K Sharma and Justice Rekha Sharma directed for withdrawal of all the records pertaining to these societies, whose premises had been sealed by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi(MCD) on direction from the lower court.

''No proceedings of any kind on any subject matter pending hearing in the higher court would be heard by the sub-ordinate courts'', the court said.

The Court said the files of Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan Memorial Society, Canara Bank Relief and Rehabilitation Society and Habitat India be placed before it on January 10, the next date of hearing.

The above-named societies had filed petitions in the District Court seeking direction for desealing of the premises.

The Counsel for Delhi Development Authority (DDA), the land owning agency, Rajiv Bansal submitted that the petitioners had obtained exparte order from the court of Additional Sessions Judge by not mentioning about the proceedings at the High Court.

The High Court, on November 23, had directed the DDA to institute a probe into the allottment of land to about 66 societies, trusts and NGOs at a concessionary rate to carry out social service in the fields of education, health, culture, research and development.

Mr Bansal had submitted that the DDA had allotted half-acre land to Canara Bank Relief and Rehabilitation(CBRR), set up by the Canara Bank for Rs 1.5 lakh.

The Canara Bank had sold the land for Rs one crore to Damayanti Sahani Women Welfare Society in 2002, said Mr Bansal.

Many societies had changed hands by replacing the members of the governing body and the DDA should look into the matter.

Mr Bansal said the preliminary probe indicated that many of the societies including that of Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan floated by sarod player Amjad Ali Khan, had been hijacked by Anil Sareen, Ashok Sareen and their relatives.

UNI PAT RL BST1833