HC adjourns hearing of a PIL on cabinet decision

Allahabad, June 19 (UNI) The Allahabad High Court today adjourned the hearing of a Public Iinterest Litigation (PIL), challenging the cabinet decision whereby the state government on June 5, 2007 had decided to discontinue the appointment of former HC Judge, Justice R H Zaidi as chairman of an Inquiry Commission.

Justice Zaidi was appointed by the Mulayam Singh Yadav government on September 6,2005 to inquire the irregularities committed in alloting 28 plots to various important persons by the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) in Vipul Khand and Gomati Nagar.

The bench, comprising Justices Vineet Saran and Saroj Bala heard the petitioner's counsel Ravikant and Additional Advocate General (AAG), Devendra Arora assisted by M C Chaturvedi, chief standing counsel, who opposed the maintainability of the PIL, filed by Abhai Awasthi of Allahabad.

The bench adjourned the case on the request of the petitioner counsel, who sought time for filing a supplementary affidavit in the case.

The period of inquiry commission, headed by Justice Zaidi, was six months but had been extended from time to time. The argument of the AAG was that continuance of the commission was futile as there was no progress report in the matter by it. The commission had itself stayed the inquiry with regard to the allotment of plots. The court has fixed next hearing on July 6, 2007 in the case.

UNI