Respite to Big B as HC stays Faizabad court order on land deal

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Lucknow, June 8 (UNI) The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court today provided a brief respite to mega star Amitabh Bachchan by staying, till further orders, the decision of the Faizabad Commissioner court declaring as illegal the allotment of farming land to him in Barabanki district of UP.

The court also admitted the petition filed by the Bollywood icon challenging the Faizabad commissioner court's order.

The bench, comprising Justice Devi Prasad Singh, stayed the Faizabad commissioner court's judgement till further orders and posted the matter for further hearing on July 23.

It also gave the Uttar Pradesh government four weeks' time to file a counter and two weeks' time to the petitioner (Amitabh Bachchan) to file a rejoinder.

Later, talking to reporters, Bachchan's counsel Md Arif Khan said: ''The court has also agreed that the petitioner was not given sufficient time to put across his case...the judgement of the Commissioner's court was one sided.'' Terming the decision of the bench as a major relief, Mr Khan said on April 24 last the Commissioner's court had given an ex-partie judgement. Then on May 31, the court had given its judgement terming the land allotment as ''illegal.'' The Commissioner's court had also observed that the papers pertaning to the deal seemed fudged.

Senior standing counsel of the Uttar Pradesh government Devendra Upadhyay, while talking to media, claimed that the state government would primarily would want to know how the superstar could get the title of a gram sabha land. ''The secondary matter is the address provided by him in revenue records....While the address is 17, Clive Road, Allahabad, the house was sold by his father later Harivansh Rai Bachchan in 1958 to one S S Tiwari Advocate,'' he said.

On Tuesday, Bachchan had moved the HC seeking respite in the matter. His counsel Gaurav Bhatia had filed the writ on his behalf.

Citing violation of rules in the revenue record entry, Faizabad Division Additional Commissioner Vidyasagar Prasad had, on May 31, quashed the order of former Barabanki District Magistrate Ramashankar Sahu alloting farming land to Big B.

Earlier, Barabanki DM Ashish Kumar Goyal had also scrapped the allotment to the actor by his predecessor Sahu.

The actor's petition claimed that the Commissioner's order had transgressed his jurisdiction and Bachchan was not given an opportunity to be heard.

Bachchan's counsel had yesterday contended that the entry in consolidation records for allotment was legal and the Commissioner had passed the order against the principle of 'natural justice' without giving an opportunity to hear him.

However, the state government counsel claimed the land in the said village could be given to only a farmer of the village and nobody else.

In his order, Mr Prasad had said under section 52 of the Consolidation Act, the collectorate had the power to amend an erroneous entry in the revenue records.

A total of 4.142 hectare land was entered in the name of Amitabh Bachchan, s/o Harivansh Rai and resident of 17, Clive Road, Allahabad.

UNI

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