Adu Ram & Anr. v. State of Rajasthan & Ors. [19.02.2021]

HIGH COURT of JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT JODHPUR 

D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 2840/2021

1. Adu Ram S/o Shri Harakha Ram, aged about 33 Years, B/c Jat, R/o Village Machro Ki Dhani, Mandawla, Tehsil Sindhari, District Barmer (Raj.)

2. Deraj Ram S/o Shri Bhera Ram, aged about 33 Years, B/c Jat, R/o Village Sirola Nada, Kadanadi, Tehsil Sindhari, District Barmer (Raj.)

----Petitioners 

Versus

1. State of Rajasthan through the Secretary, Department of Revenue, Government of Rajasthan, Secretariat, Jaipur (Raj.)

2. District Collector, Barmer (Raj.)

3. Sub Divisional Office, Sindhari, District Barmer (Raj.)

4. Tehsildar, Sindhari, District Barmer (Raj.)

5. Secretary, Gram Panchayat Kadanadi, Panchayat Samiti Sindhari, District Barmer (Raj.)

----Respondents 

For Petitioner(s) : Mr. M.R. Choudhary.

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANGEET LODHA 

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAMESHWAR VYAS 

Order 

19/02/2021 

Heard.

By way of this writ petition, the petitioners have raised grievance regarding land comprising Khasra Nos.240 and 241 of revenue village Laxmanpura, Patwar Circle Kada Nadi, Teshil Sindhari, District Barmer, categorized as "Nadi" and "Agore" land in the revenue record, which has been put to use as cremation ground.

In D.B. Civil Writ Petition (PIL) No.10819/18 : Jagdish Prasad Meena & Ors. Vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors., a Bench of this Court at Jaipur with a view to provide a pan-Rajasthan solution for persisting problem of encroachment on the land of public way, johar paitan, 'Nadi', river bed etc. issued directions as under: -

"In order therefore to provide a pan-Rajasthan solution to this ever persisting problem, we deem it appropriate to direct the Chief Secretary of the State to devise a permanent mechanism, which should be operational in every District of the State where the concerned District Collector should be required to periodically notify for the information of the general public to lodge the complaints/representations with regard to such encroachments with a specially designated Public Land Protection Cell (for short 'PLPC') for rural areas. The PLPC should be head by District Collector and function under his direction and supervision. The PLPC shall get such complaints/representations enquired into by deputing concerned Sub Divisional Officer/Tehsildar/Naib Tehsildar so as to verity whether or not such encroachments have actually taken place on such land. If the allegations are found to be substantiated, appropriate steps in accordance with law be immediately taken for removal of the encroachments and appropriate penal action be also taken against the trespassers. The complaints/representations received in the PLPC should be decided by passing speaking order, informing the respective complainant/ representationist about the action taken. This would obviate the necessity of such complainants/representationists approaching this Court directly by way of public interest litigation. If this practice is put in place, this Court would not be inclined to directly entertain such public interest litigation or would do so only in the event of inaction on the part of the concerned PLPC .

The PLPC aforementioned shall also keep in view the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court in Jagpal Singh & Others vs. State of Punjab & Others, (2011) 11 SCC 396 wherein all the State Governments of the country were directed that they should prepare schemes for eviction of illegal/unauthorised occupants of the Gram Sabha/Gram Panchayat/Poramboke/ Shamlat land and the same must be restored to the Gram Sabha/Gram Panchayat for the common use of villagers of the village. The said scheme should provide for the speedy eviction of illegal occupants, after giving them a show cause notice and a brief hearing. It was further held therein that long duration of the illegal encroachment/occupation of land or huge expenditure in making construction thereon or political connections of trespassers are no justification for regularising such illegal occupation. Regularisation should be permitted only in exceptional cases where lease has been granted under some government notification .e.g. to landless labourers or members of Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes or where there is already a school, hospital, dispensary, 'shamshan', 'kabristan' or other public utility of the like nature on the land.

Observations of the Supreme Court in Jagpal Singh (supra) thus leave no manner of doubt that removal of encroachment on all such land is a rule and regularisation an exception and that too in extremely limited number of cases, which only the Government can do by appropriate notification of the government and no other authority."

The grievances raised by the petitioners in the writ petition can be looked into by the Public Land Protection Committee constituted at District Level pursuant to order passed by this Court in the case of Jagdish Meena (supra).

It is open for the petitioners to make representation to the Public Land Protection Cell (PLPC) of District Barmer constituted pursuant to the directions of this Court in Jagdish Prasad Meena's case (supra), which is expected to be dealt with in accordance with law.

The petition stands disposed of with the observation as above.

                (RAMESHWAR VYAS),J                 (SANGEET LODHA),J