RAMCHANDER vs UNION OF INDIA & ANR

Judgment text excerpt

$~74 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI % Date of Decision: 11th March, 2025 + W.P.(C) 2839/2020 RAMCHANDER .....Petitioner Through: Mr. Anil Goel, Mr. Aditya Goel and Mr. Chanchal Sharma, Advocates. versus UNION OF INDIA & ANR .....Respondents Through: Mr. Om Prakash, SPC with Mr. Chandresh Pratap and Ms. Swati Mishra, Advocates with Mr. Digvijay Singh, CMI/Legal. CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE JYOTI SINGH JUDGEMENT JYOTI SINGH, J. (ORAL) 1. This writ petition is preferred on behalf of the Petitioner seeking a direction to the Respondents to refund an amount of Rs.5,54,079/- along with interest @ 18 per cent per annum from the date excess payment was made by the Petitioner to the Railways till realisation of the money, in light of judgment dated 28.08.2017 passed by this Court in OMP (COMM) 5/2015, titled ‘Ram Chander v. Union of India & Another’. 2. Factual matrix to the extent necessary is that Petitioner entered into a Lease Agreement on 09.06.2008 with the Railways for leasing parcel space in brake vans in Train No. 2280-R Ex. HNZM to JHS. The Lease Agreement was for a period of three years i.e. from 03.04.2008 to 02.04.2011 with a clause for extension of lease by a further period of two Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed W.P.(C) 2839/2020 Page 1 of 14 By:KAMAL KUMAR Signing Date:20.03.2025 19:13:09 years. The lease rate was Rs.5,114/- per day. Clause 18.1 of the Agreement provided for extension of the lease by two years at a lease rate of 25% more than the lumpsum lease freight rate. 3. Petitioner’s case is that on 17.01.2011, he sent a request for extension of lease period for two years and offered to pay 25% extra freight i.e. Rs.6,392.50. Despite several reminders, Railways did not extend the Lease Agreement and constrained, Petitioner filed a petition