The Punjab and Haryana high court has directed the chief administrator, Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA), to file his own affidavit within one week detailing in how many cases in five years the agency sought an undertaking from a plot holder that he will not file any court case.

“If an instrumentality of the state, particularly the housing department, puts a condition in a demand notice that the grievance of the person concerned would be considered only if he furnishes an affidavit stating that he will not file any case before any Court or take any other action, the same is prima facie atrocious in nature, besides being unconstitutional and violative of the provisions of the Indian Contract Act, the bench of Justice JS Puri and Justice PS Chauhan observed.

It was on September 3, that in a dispute between the plot allottee and GMADA, it had come to court’s notice that such undertakings are being taken by the GMADA. The petitioner in an order by the estate office was told in October 2024 to furnish an affidavit stating that he will not file any court case or take any other action against the orders of the revision petition or for the waiver of construction fees.

Taking serious note of the same, the court had sought response of the GMADA.

During the resumed hearing on September 14, even as GMADA told the court that the imposed condition had been withdrawn, the counsel for the petitioner pointed out that this is not an isolated case and that the condition does not pertain only to the present petitioner but is being imposed in other cases as well.

“We therefore have no other option but to take a very serious view of the aforesaid submission made by the learned counsel for the petitioner, if it turns out to be correct,” it said expanding the scope and asking the GMADA chief to give number of other such cases by September 22.