- (1.) The petitioners have approached this Court with a prayer for quashing auction notice (P-3) and proclamation of sale, dated 8.12.2010 (P-4 to P-6). A further prayer has been made for adinterim order of staying the auction.
(2.) Brief facts of the case are that the petitioners, who are farmers, secured loan from the Pathankot Primary Co-operative Agricultural Development Bank Ltd.-respondent No. 3. On 10.6.2008 a Scheme was devised by the Government of India granting relaxation to the Indian farmers by introducing a scheme for waiving off the loans and interest in respect of the farmers who have less than five acres of holding. A sum of Rs. 71,000 crores was spent to help the families of the farmers (P-1). However, on 8.12.2010, the respondent Bank issued notices in Form 'E' for proclamation under Section 19(1) of the Agriculture Development Bank Act, 1957 (for brevity, 'the 1957 Act'). Some amount appears to have been deposited by one of the petitioners, namely, Shri Thurru Ram-petitioner No. 5 on 10.11.2010.
(3.) In response to the notice of motion, respondent Bank has filed the reply and a separate but similar reply has been filed by respondent No. 1. The stand taken in the written statement is that the petitioners have secured non-farm sector loan and the details have been given in para 4 of the written statement. It has been pointed out that the Agricultural Debt Waiver Relief Scheme, 2008 (for brevity, 'the Scheme') [R-1] lays down the criteria and categories for beneficiaries of the scheme. The Scheme was applicable only for those 'direct agricultural loans', which fulfill the following three conditions:- (a) Disbursed between 31.3.1997 to 31.3.2007; (b) Overdue on 31.12.2007; and (c) Remaining unpaid until 29.2.2008 was to be eligible for debt waiver/debt relief.;