Representative image of land.
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A significant land transaction in Haryana involving a female IAS officer, her spouse who serves as the state information commissioner, and a former additional chief secretary has been brought to a halt following discrepancies highlighted by Panchkula revenue officials, Indian Express reported.
The Ambala Divisional Commissioner, Renu Phulia, rendered a quasi-judicial decision on September 13, 2023, to lift a 20-year-old injunction on the sale and purchase of a 14-acre land parcel near Panchkula, originally owned by a former king. This decision, prompted by a petition filed by the brother of former additional chief secretary Shashi Gulati, Prithvi Raj Chhabra, was made within a mere 16 days.
Shortly after this decision, Renu's husband, S S Phulia, who currently serves as the state information commissioner, along with their son Nilanchal, expressed interest in purchasing five acres of this land. S S Phulia, a former IAS officer, assumed the role of state information commissioner in 2022, the report noted.
On March 28, Shashi Gulati and her brother initiated proceedings to register approximately 12 acres of land in Panchkula. They asserted that they had sold this land to four individuals for a total sum of Rs 5.26 crore. Notably, five acres were sold to the Phulia family, with the rest intended for Shubham Juneja, a resident of Manimajra and the wife of a former Indian Forest Services officer. However, officials indicated that the market value of the land exceeded the current transaction amount.
IE reported that on March 29, the state government ceased registering land transactions in response to a request for guidance from Panchkula Deputy Commissioner Sushil Sarwan. This action was taken upon instructions from Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) T V S N Prasad, indicating a need to reassess the surplus area of the 1,396-acre land previously owned by King Sardar Bhagwant Singh.
According to official records, Shashi Gulati and her family acquired 14 acres of land from the late king's legal heirs in the village of Beed Firozadi in Panchkula district. However, certain villages in Panchkula have experienced a 20-year stay on land transactions as authorities aim to determine surplus areas under the Haryana Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1972, versus permissible areas.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court's directive on February 24, 2023, tasked Panchkula's SDM with re-evaluating surplus areas in accordance with the law, prompting procedural actions.
In their petition to the Ambala Commissioner, Shashi Gulati's family sought to annul the stay order, asserting that the concerned land did not fall under the surplus category. They also noted that the stay had been lifted twice previously. Renu Phulia's decision to overturn the stay order issued by the SDM in 2003 occurred through a quasi-judicial order in September 2023.
In response to queries from IE, Renu Phulia stated that discussions regarding her family's land purchase occurred some time after her order was issued.
“When they (Shashi Gulati family) filed a petition before her court, we had no talks regarding purchase of the land concerned. They filed the case in routine, I decided it in routine. They were given permission to sell the land concerned as it is a permissible area", she told the publication.
She clarified that these discussions took place in October-November 2023, after the petition had been filed, and asserted that the land in question fell within permissible areas. She further indicated that necessary permissions were obtained from the government for the purchase, with her husband making an initial payment in December 2023, and stamp duty paid accordingly.