Karnail Singh and Another v. Ut of J and K Th Secretary, Public Works (R and B) Department, Jammu and Others

ORDER (25.02.2026)

¶1The petitioners, through the medium of this petition, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seek direction to the respondents to release and pay the due payments/amounts of the petitioner No.1 to the tune of Rs. Serial No. 162

5,79,453/- in lieu of completion of 'Balance Civil Work' at Forest Resource Management Centre, (ICT) Narwal Bachan Depot, Jammu-Phase-I and further to release and pay the due payments/amounts of the petitioner No. 2 to the tune of Rs. 4,80,285/- and Rs. 4,65,089/- in lieu of completion of work namely 'Outer Face-Lifting of Forest Resources Management Centre' at Bachan Depot Narwal Jammu and for the 'repair of Office building of Divisional Commissioner, Jammu respectively along with the interest @ 18 % per annum.

¶2Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the aforementioned works were executed by the petitioners as Contractors having been allotted and executed by the J&K Projects Constructions Corporation Ltd before reorganization of J&K Public Works Department, however, with the merging of JKPCC Ltd. Jammu into the PWD, the aforesaid amounts have not been paid to the petitioners for the last so many years and the petitioners have been suffering on this count. The petitioners have placed on record the communication from Superintending Engineer South-respondent No. 5 to the Chief Engineer, PW (R&B) Department, Jammu vide No. SESJ/ADM/2024-25/2551-52 dated 30.07.2024, whereby the bills on account of work done at Van Bhawan Building Jammu for the work 'Forest Resource Management Centre', ICT Narwal (Bachan Depot) at Narwal, Jammu were submitted relating to the petitioners for release of funds amounting to Rs. 15,24,827/- so that the claims of the petitioners for the executed work got cleared at the earliest. The Chief Engineer, in turn on

05.08.2024 and 08.01.2025 took up the matter with administrative department of PWD, in Civil Secretariat, Jammu, however, the amount has not been released in favour of the petitioners till now.

¶3Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the petitioners will be satisfied in case the petition is disposed of with a direction to the respondents to make payment of the aforesaid admitted amounts to the petitioners at the earliest.

¶4In view of the pleading, documents placed on record and the submissions made by learned counsel for the petitioners, the petition is disposed of at this motion stage, with a direction to the respondents to consider and release the amounts as pleaded, if admitted, in favour of the petitioners, expeditiously, preferably within a period of four months from the date, a copy of this order is served upon them.

¶5The writ petition is disposed of, accordingly, along with connected application(s).

(M A CHOWDHARY)

JUDGE Jammu

25.02.2026 Tarun/PS

HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH AT JAMMU CM No. 1017/2026 1. Karnail Singh S/O Major Singh R/O Extn. Sec 1-A, Trikuta Nagar, Jammu, 180020. 2. Harbans Lal S/O Sukhdev Raj R/O, Lachman Pur, Jammu, 180003 …..Appellant(s)/Petitioner(s) Through: Mr. Vivek Sharma, Advocate & Mr. Nikhil Goswami, Advocate Mr. Abid Khan, Advocate 1. UT of Jammu & Kashmir Through Secretary To Government, Public Works Department (R&B) Civil Secretariat, Jammu. 2. Financial Commissioner (ACS) PW(R&B) Department, Civil Secretariat, Jammu/Srinagar. 3. Director Finance, PW(R&B) Department, Jammu 4. Chief Engineer, PWD (R&B) Jammu Zone. 5. Superintending Engineer, PWD (R&B) Circle South 6. Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Division, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu .…. Respondent(s) Through: Mr. Nirmal Kotwal, Advocate vice Mr. Ravinder Gupta, AAG CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE M A CHOWDHARY, JUDGE