The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has reprimanded the Jammu Development Authority (JDA) for auctioning a plot of land in Jammu that was under encroachment, retaining a bidder’s deposited amount for over 15 years without delivering possession, and attempting to forfeit the funds citing payment defaults caused by its own lapses.
The court imposed a cost of Rs 50,000 on the JDA, directing the authority to deposit the amount with the Advocates’ Welfare Fund within four weeks. Of this, Rs 25,000 is for misleading the court through contradictory stands, recoverable from responsible officers after inquiry, and Rs 25,000 is for the unjustified retention of the petitioner’s money and prolonged delay.
According to details received by The Chenab Times, the judgment was delivered by Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal on February 25, 2026, in a petition filed by Changa Ram, a resident of Tehsil Marh in Jammu district. The case stems from a 2011 public auction conducted by the JDA for a plot measuring 5.38 kanals at Chinore Chowk in Bantalab area of Jammu.
Changa Ram emerged as the highest bidder, offering Rs 41 lakh per kanal, for a total bid value exceeding Rs 2.20 crore. Following the issuance of a Letter of Intent by the JDA, he deposited Rs 5 lakh as earnest money and later paid Rs 20.50 lakh as the first installment, totaling Rs 25.50 lakh. However, upon visiting the site shortly after, he discovered that the land was not vacant as represented but was already encroached upon, with pucca structures, lanes, and access gates present on the plot.
The petitioner promptly informed the JDA about the encroachments in April 2011 and requested removal of the illegal occupations along with re-measurement of the land before paying the balance amount. Court records indicate that encroachments on the site had been reported internally as early as 2008-09, well before the auction notice was issued. Later measurements confirmed a shortage of land due to permanent structures, and affidavits from senior JDA officials acknowledged the lack of clear records confirming the plot was free from encumbrances at the time of auction.
Instead of addressing the issue, the JDA issued revised demands for higher payments, citing an alleged oversight in the earlier schedule, while failing to hand over possession. Despite repeated representations, inspections, and assurances from officials, the JDA neither removed the encroachments nor refunded the deposited amount, retaining it for more than 15 years.
Justice Nargal observed that the JDA had auctioned an encroached plot, induced the petitioner to part with substantial funds, and placed itself in a position to benefit from its own wrongdoing by neither allotting the land nor returning the money. The court held that a public authority, acting as a trustee of public resources, is obligated to ensure full disclosure and deliver vacant possession in auctions. Concealment of encumbrances or failure to verify possession amounts to arbitrary exercise of power.
The court rejected the JDA’s defence that the petitioner had defaulted on payments, ruling that forfeiture provisions cannot be invoked where the alleged default results directly from the authority’s own failure to provide clear title and possession. A citizen cannot be penalized for lapses committed by a public body, the judgment emphasized, adding that the authority cannot take advantage of circumstances it created.
The High Court allowed the petition and directed the JDA to proceed with allotment based on 2011 prevailing rates, not current market prices. It ordered the preparation of detailed calculation sheets for the balance payable on the 5.01 kanals found free from encumbrances. For the remaining approximately 0.37 kanals affected by encroachment, the JDA must allot equivalent land in the same vicinity to ensure the petitioner receives the full original extent.
The petitioner has been given one month to deposit the balance amount after receiving the calculations, following which the JDA must complete formalities and hand over possession of the entire land free from encumbrances within the stipulated period.
The Chenab Times News Desk