Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 16: The long drawn litigation between J&K Housing Board and successors in interest of Baba Ibrahim with regard to possession of two plots of land in Gole Market area of Gandhi Nagar was put to an end by Additional District Judge Jammu Tahir Khurshid Raina by sustaining the claim of Housing Board.
These successors in interest filed an injunction suit in the trial court in the year 2006 titled Ch Mohd Sadiq and Others Versus J&K Housing Board seeking injunction against the Housing Board , not to interfere in their peaceful possession over the suit land.
The trial court finally dismissed the suit primarily on the ground of principle of Res judicata. An appeal against the judgement and decree was preferred by these plaintiffs in the year 2013 in the court of District Judge Jammu which was assigned to the court of Additional District Judge Jammu for adjudication.
Finally same got decided by the Additional District Court Jammu by dismissing the instant appeal filed by the successors and upheld the judgment of trial court as legally sustainable. Court observed that principle of Res judicata has been rightly applied by the trial court which sustains on the touchstone of law.
Brief facts of the case are that J&K Wakf Committee filed suit against the successors in interest of Baba Ibrahim in late sixties seeking restraint from alienating or raising any construction on the chunk of land which Wakf authorities claim to be of Wakf but under illegal occupation of successors.
On the other hand successors claim was that land was allotted to them by the Govt in the year 1955. This issue which became subject of litigation in the trial court and High Court at Jammu finally got culminated at Supreme Court the year 1991. The Supreme Court in decided the case in favour of J&K Wakf and land to be originally belonging to the Government of J&K .
During the pendency of appeal in SC, the Government in the year 1980 transferred two plots of land (suit land) out of the whole disputed land to Housing Board. This order was not challenged either by Wakf or by successors in interest. During pendency of the appeal in SC, successors in interest also filed a suit against Housing board not to interfere in their peaceful possession over two plots which remained a bone of contention between the parties .
Successors based their claim on this ground that when matter is pending in SC, they should not be dispossessed. The suit on this ground was decreed in their favour in 1987. However, in 1991 SC decided against the claim of successors by not recognising their any personal right over the said land which includes the two plots in Gole Market Gandhi Nagar transferred by Govt to Housing Board in 1980. Their status with regard to Ziarat property including its landed property was recognised as that of manager or a care takers, though they claimed to have personal possession and title over the said land.
The successors to reopen the issue of personal possession, filed writ petition in the HC Jammu in the year 1996 and the same got decided in 1999 rejecting the claim of personal possession of successors over the said two plots. However, not reconciling with this legal position, they again filed injunction suit in 2006 in the trial court against the Housing Board and the same got decided in the year 2013 rejecting their claim of personal possession of the two plots on account of categoric findings of SC and HC on this issue hence attracted the principle of Res Judicata–an issue which stands earlier settled by the competent court between the parties to the dispute cannot be reopened again by the parties to the dispute.
The decision was challenged by the successors in interest before the Additional District Court Jammu, which today passed the judgement.
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