Team Herald
MARGAO: Offering much relief to the agitating locals of Cansaulim-Arrosim-Cuelim (CAC), the High Court of Bombay at Goa dismissed the writ petition filed by Competent Automobiles Company Pvt Ltd challenging the order of the South Goa District Court.
The South Goa Additional District and Sessions Judge P V Sawaikar on July 1 had granted an interim stay on an order passed by the Additional Director of Panchayats Gopal Parsekar permitting a New Delhi-based private company to construct a 226-room starred resort at Arrosim-Cansaulim. The CAC panchayat had challenged Parsekar’s order before the High Court, which passed its own order after hearing the petitioners who challenged the district court order.
The counsel asserted that the revision petition was not maintainable as the order passed in the appeal under Section 66(7) of the act to the Director of Panchayats was final. The counsel also raised a grievance that the ex parte order had been passed without giving plausible reasons and that the date fixed by the judge was August 4, 2015, which was not at all justifiable, in the facts and circumstances of the case.
In its order, the High Court said, “Considering that the order under challenge before this court is only an ad interim order and a notice has been issued by the district judge to the petitioner, at this stage we find that there is no reason to interfere in such orders by this Court under articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution.”
The High Court further stated that the petitioners are entitled to raise their objections, including the contention that the revision itself is not maintainable, before the district judge.
It directed the district judge to examine all such contentions, after hearing the parties, in accordance with the law. Regarding the petitioners’ contention about the date fixed on August 4, the High Court granted liberty to the petitioners to move the district judge to bring forward the date by filing an appropriate application to that effect.
“It is made clear that the contentions of the parties shall be examined on their own merits by the judge. Subject to the above, the writ petition stands dismissed, with liberty to the petitioners to file an appropriate application to prepone the date fixed on August 4 and seek appropriate relief,” read the order.
