A.B.Srivastava, J. - (1.) The petitioners in this bunch of writ petitions have impugned the order of Collector, Dehradun in his capacity as the Administrator of the Municipal Board, Mussoorie, cancelling the allotment and sale of flats, six in number, constructed under the Middle Income Group Housing scheme of the Central Government, in the area called Mount Rose, Camel Back Road, Mussoorie, in the district of Dehradun. The cause and questions being common, all these petitions have been heard together and are being disposed of by a common-judgment.
(2.) In order to make provision of housing for the people of the Middle income Group in the hill region of Mussoorie, two blocks of six houses each, were constructed from the loan advanced under the Middle Income Group Housing Scheme of the Government of India, by the Nagar Palika, Mussoorie. The conditions upon which the loan was sanctioned, interalie provided that these houses will be constructed in accordance with the lay out plan prepared by the Chief Town and Village Planner U. P., and allotment thereof shall be made to the persons in the middle income group in accordance with scheme as formulated by the Government of India, and the instructions issued thereunder by the State Government, from time to time. Initially the Nagar Palika used these flats as hotel for tourists. Subsequently, six out of the twelve flats were rented out to the officials of the Door Darshan posted in Mussoorie and were later sold to the said Department for occupation by their employees.
(3.) Six other flats bearing Nos. A-1 to A-6 Mount Rose, Mussoorie, which are subject matter of these writ petitions, were however, on the instructions of the Officer-in-charge of the Nagar Palika, Mussorie offered for sale, by the Executive Officer, by means of an advertisement dated 4-3-1981 in a local newspaper 'Damama', inviting applications from the desirous persons belonging to the Middle Income Group. The total cost of each flat was shown in the said advertisement to be approximately Rs. 55,000/-. On the petitioners, Kameshwar Prasad from Darbhanga in Bihar, Smt. Anju Walia from Chawri Bazar, Delhi, Smt. Dharma Chandrashekhar from Kolka Ji, New Delhi, Smt. Shaman Kawtra from Calcutta, Hansraj from Gurgaon in Harayana, and Krishna Lal Gupta an official of the Musscorie Nagar Palika, allegedly responding to the advertisement and depositing a sum of Rs. 75,000/- each, allotment was made and possession over the fiats along with all the fixtures and furnitures therein, was instantly delivered to them by the Executive Officer, and the Officer-in-charge of the Nagar Palika. Thereafter these flats, without any sanction of the Government or any competent authority, were transferred to the petitioners for the sum of Rs. 75,000/- each by means of a sale Deed dated 25-6-1982 and the same day, Lease Deeds about the land underneath were executed in their favour by the Executive Officer the then Officer-in-charge of the Nagar Palika, one J.T. Srivastava, being an attesting witness on both the instruments.;