Rajasthan High Court – Jaipur
Ramnivas Khichar Son Of Shri Nanuram … vs Union Of India on 16 January, 2025
Bench: Manindra Mohan Shrivastava, Uma Shanker Vyas
[2025:RJ-JP:2118-DB]
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN
BENCH AT JAIPUR
D. B. Public Interest Litigation Petition No. 16088/2024
1. Ramnivas Khichar Son of Shri Nanuram Khichar, Aged
About 48 Years, Resident of Ward No.15 Village Doojod,
Tehsil-Sikar, District-Sikar (Rajasthan), 332021.
2. Prahalad Son of Shri Haresh Chand, Aged About 44 Years,
Resident Of Village Doojod, Sikar (Rajasthan), 332021.
----Petitioners
Versus
1. Union of India, through Secretary (Power) Ministry of
Power, Government of India, Shram Shakti Bhawan, New
Delhi.
2. The State of Rajasthan, through Secretary, Department of
Energy, Government Secretariat, Jaipur, Rajasthan.
3. Chairman and Managing Director Power Grid Corporation
of India Limited, Registered Office At B-9, Qutab
Industrial Area, Katwaria Sarai, New Delhi-110016.
4. The Director, Power Grid Bhadala-III, Transmission
Limited, Registered Office At B-9, Qutab Industrial Area,
Katwaria Sarai, New Delhi-110016.
5. Project Incharge, Power Grid Bhadala-III, Transmission
Limited, Registered Office At B-9, Qutab Industrial Area,
Katwaria Sarai, New Delhi-110016.
6. Project Head, Line Incharge, 6C-104, Power Grid Bhadala-
III Transmission Limited, Jai Narayan Vyas Colony,
Bikaner-334001.
7. Head of Department of All Project, Power Grid Corporation
of India Limited, Office At B-4/184, Chitrakoot Scheme,
Vaishali Nagar, Jaipur-302201.
8. District Collector, Sikar (Rajasthan).
9. Secretary, Urban Improvement Trust, Sikar (Rajasthan).
----Respondents
For Petitioner : Mr. R.N. Mathur, Senior Advocate
assisted by Mr. Amit Singh Shekhawat
Advocate and Mr. Akhil Dadhich
Advocate.
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For Respondents : Mr. Virendra Lodha, Senior Advocate
assisted by Mr. Prateek Sharma
Advocate.
Mr. Sumit Tetarwal Advocate on
behalf of Mr. R.D. Rastogi, Additional
Solicitor General.
Mr. Sandeep Taneja Additional
Advocate General with Ms. Kinjal
Surana Advocate.
HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. MANINDRA MOHAN SHRIVASTAVA
HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE UMA SHANKER VYAS
Order
16/01/2025
(Per Hon’ble the Chief Justice):
1. This public interest litigation petition has been filed by the
petitioners seeking to challenge installation and laying of
transmission lines by the respondent-Power Grid Corporation of
India Limited over some of the wards of Village Doojod, District
Sikar.
2. Mr. R.N. Mathur, learned Senior Advocate appearing on
behalf of the petitioners argued that laying of transmission lines
over and above some of the wards of Village Doojod, District
Sikar is against the public interest inasmuch as before deciding
the route, while conducting survey, District Sikar including Sikar
proper was not surveyed to find out as to whether it would be
feasible to allow laying of transmission lines overhead. Learned
Senior Advocate, referring to survey report placed on record,
submitted that survey report, in detail, considers feasibility of
laying of transmission lines at different places, but it does not
mention District Sikar at all. Therefore, in the matter of preparing
action plan, the policy itself has been violated.
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Further submission of learned Senior Advocate is that the
policy mandatorily requires exploration of the alternative routes.
In fact, it is argued, there is nothing in the report or any other
document to show that any alternative route was explored. It is
submitted that had some exercise been undertaken in that
direction, it was easier to find out alternative route excluding
Village Doojod, District Sikar.
3. Learned Senior Advocate further argued that not only the
local administration, but the public at large raised substantial
objections which have fallen on deaf ear and without due and
proper consideration of the objections, the respondents are
proceeding to lay transmission lines overhead Village Doojod,
crossing through some of its wards. It is also submitted that the
area is thickly populated, there are hospitals and educational
institutions which are going to be adversely affected in their
operations if the transmission lines are allowed to cross through
the area. In the absence of effective public consultation, public
interest has been seriously jeopardised.
4. On advance copy, Mr. Virendra Lodha, learned Senior Advocate
appearing on behalf of the respondent-Power Grid Corporation of
India Limited would submit that the petition is based on
exaggerated facts. He would submit that in the entire petition,
there is no ground alleging violation of provisions of law in the
matter of laying of overhead transmission lines. Learned Senior
Advocate would secondly submit that the hospitals and
educational institutions all are situated at a very convenient
distance and the Google Map clearly shows that the transmission
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lines are being laid over some of the wards of Village Doojod,
District Sikar which are not at all thickly populated. In any case, it
is argued that the larger public interest lies in laying of
transmission lines, so as to facilitate the transmission of power to
various areas from the production unit.
5. Having gone through the petition, we find that none of the
grounds taken in the petition leads to violation of any statutory
provisions contained in the Electricity Act, 2003 or any of the
provisions contained in the rules framed thereunder regulating
laying of transmission lines. Even if we assume that the survey
report did not include Village Doojod, District Sikar, we do not find
that any public harm lies in laying of overhead transmission lines
which are crossing through some of the wards of Village Doojod,
District Sikar. Google Map also indicates that the population
underneath is scattered. It is not even a city. The distance of the
medical college and other places is such that it cannot be said to
be a case of causing public harm in laying of transmission lines
overhead Village Doojod, District Sikar, crossing through some of
its wards.
In order to verify whether objections raised from different
corners, including administration, were addressed to by the
competent authority of the respondent-Power Grid Corporation of
India Limited, we required learned Senior Advocate appearing on
advance copy on behalf of the respondent-Corporation to file an
affidavit. The averments made in the affidavit along with the
minutes of meeting satisfies us that various objections were raised
which were considered and only after consideration of those
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objections, the respondents have proceeded to lay overhead
transmission lines. This Court, while exercising its jurisdiction
under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, would not act as an
appellate authority to sit over the correctness or otherwise of the
opinion formed on various objections. Once it is found that various
objections so raised were taken into consideration, the matter
ends there.
6. In view of above, this public interest litigation petition is
misconceived and the same is, therefore, dismissed.
(UMA SHANKER VYAS),J (MANINDRA MOHAN SHRIVASTAVA),CJ
MANOJ NARWANI/-
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