Farmers Movement Archive

Legal notice to Haryana CM and CS for damage to property

CHANDIGARH: Generally it is the state authorities who book protesters in case of destruction of public property during any protest for recovery of the damages, but this time it is the Haryana government that is at the receiving end for damage caused to state and national highways at several places by state agencies to prevent protesting farmers from reaching Delhi. This, when the farmers’ protest remained peaceful and they were finally allowed to enter Delhi on Friday afternoon. Advocate Ravinder Singh has sent a legal notice on Friday under the Damage of Public Property Act, 1984, to Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, state chief secretary and the state DGP for recovery of damages from their pocket for damaging public property from November 25 to 27. In the legal notice, it has been stated that the CM, chief secretary and the DGP, without any proper authority or violent instigation, instructed to damage the public roads en route to Delhi, including a stretch of the Amritsar-Delhi National Highway near Shambu border, Singhu border and certain areas of Karnal, Kurukshetra, Panipat and Sonepat districts. Similar damage was done to Barwala-Hisar road and in Sirsa district, as well as to Hisar-Delhi road by state elements, thereby obstructing the entire traffic for two days, holding the entire state to ransom "The damage caused was wholly unwarranted and without any instigation as not a single case of violence has been reported from any angle and peaceful demonstration is a right as per the provisions contained in Article 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution,’’ reads the legal notice. It has been further stated in the notice that the CM, the chief secretary and the state DGP are duty-bound to pay damage to the private persons who were kept standing on the roads for two days without any legal justification and were not allowed to move due to illegal obstruction by the state elements. "The state had many means to stop the march, including talks with the persons associated in the peaceful protest. By no means had you any authority to cause any damage to the public property, including national highways and state highways. You are requested to appoint a claim commissioner as per the directions of the SC in Destruction of Public and Private Properties versus state of Andhra Pradesh and others so that recovery of the damage may be done from you," Dhull has mentioned in his legal notice. Further requesting the CM, chief secretary and the DGP to pay and deposit the damages in the state exchequer, he has made it clear in the notice that he would be taking legal course for recovery of such damage.

The Times of India

2020-11-29

Chandigarh