JUDGEMENT
JAGJIT SINGH, J. -
(1.)Through this petition, filed under article 227 of the Constitution of India, Shri Ved Perkash Tuli has requested that the orders of the competent authority made on August 19, 1971 and October 23, 1971 may be quashed and the competent authority be directed to dispose of afresh on merits the application of Shri Nand Kishore for permission to institute proceedings for his eviction from a shop situate in a slum area.
(2.)The petition was first placed for hearing before Rangarajan, J. The learned Judge referred the case to a larger Bench as in his opinion "a very important question of procedure on which there is a conflict of opinion" was involved. Accordingly the case was heard by us. Under the provisions of section 19 of the Slum Areas (Improvement and Clearance) Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act") an application was submitted by Shri Nand Kishore, on March 31. 1971, for permission of the competent authority appointed under the Act to institute proceedings tor obtaining an order for eviction of his tenant, Shri Ved Perkash Tuli, from shop No. 1501, Farash Khana, Delhi. The competent authority fixed May 4, 1971 for hearing of the application and sent notices through the process serving agency and by registered post (acknowledgment due). On April 27, 1971 a process-server made a report that Shri Ved Perkash had refused to accept the notice. That report was attested by one Ishwar Dass but was not supported by any affidavit of the process server concerned. The registered cover, which also contained the notice, was received back undelivered with a report dated April 29, 1971 regarding refusal of the addressee to take delivery. On the cover there was also a report dated April 26, 1971 that the addressee could not be found in spite of repeated attempt Further on a margin of the cover the 20th, the 21st, the 22nd, the 23rd and the 24th April were as well noted, obviously to indicate the other dates on which attempts had been made to deliver the registered letter containing the notice to the addressee.
(3.)The competent authority directed on May 4, 1971 that service of fresh notice be affected on Shri Ved Perkash for May 22, 1971 "through affixation at site in presence of two witnesses". In compliance with that order the notice for May 22, 1971 was affixed on the shop in dispute on May 19, 1971 in the presence of two witnesses, Shri Jagdish Prasad and Sita Ram.
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