By IANS,
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court Thursday directed the Indian Railways to restore the possession of a barber shop to a freedom fighter’s daughter-in-law who was evicted from the premises at the Old Delhi Railway Station.
The railways were directed to pay Rs.50,000 in compensation for the action which was “barbaric against the barber”.
Justice Kailash Gambhir said: “It is directed to restore the possession of the said barber shop to the petitioner (Shakuntala Devi) within 24 hours.”
“The respondent shall also compensate the petitioner for throwing her out illegally from the said shop for which respondent shall pay a sum of Rs.50,000 to the petitioner within a period of one week,” the court said.
“It is quite surprising that a person who remained in possession of the shop for more than 30 years has been thrown out just overnight,” said Justice Gambhir.
“The present case demonstrates the ongoing high-handedness of the respondent (Indian Railways) and the blatant disregard for the rule of law. Undoubtedly, the action of the respondent is barbaric against the barber,” the court said.
The widow approached the court after being thrown out of the shop which was awarded to her father-in-law Karan Singh, a freedom fighter, by the president through the Indian Railways July 22, 1981.
It was alleged that the station master July 19 last year demanded Rs.50,000 bribe and threatened eviction if she failed to pay up.
Later, the railways sealed the shop without giving any eviction notice to her.