1 wp-4837-10 pdp IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 4837 OF 2010 Mr. Ananious Bautis Rumao .. Petitioner Vs. State of Maharashtra and ors. .. Respondents Mr. A.S. Khandeparkar i/by Mr. Vishal S. Kothari for petitioner. Mr. A.B. Vagyani, AGP for respondent nos.1 to 4. CORAM: B. H. MARLAPALLE & U. D. SALVI, JJ. OCTOBER 21, 2010. P.C. 1. Heard Mr. Khandeparkar, the learned counsel for the petitioner. 2. Rule. 2 wp-4837-10 3. Respondents waive service. Petition is heard finally. 4. The petitioner had purchased a patch of land from Gat No. 1029/A of village Osargaon, Taluka – Kankavli, District – Sindhudurg sometimes in the year 2000 and on 17/8/2001 Mutation Entry No. 1074 was made in his favour. He submitted an application on 30/4/2004 for permission to install a stone crusher in the said land. However, while writing the Gat number of the land, he had written it as Gat No. 1029/B and this was on account of the fact that during the intervening period the Takuka Inspector of Land Records, Kankavli re-numbered the earlier Gat No.1029/A as Gat No.1029/B and vis-a-versa. The petitioner was granted permission for stone crusher upto 31/7/2005, but pursuant to the circular dated 25/2/2005 the license came to be questioned and he was informed by order dated 18/3/2006 to shut down the crusher and discontinue its use as the land was a forest land. The stone crusher was sealed on 5/4/2010. Hence, this petition. 5. Shri Ravindra Ashok Baviskar, Tahsildar, Kankavali has filed affidavit in reply and has admitted that original Gat No.1029/A was not a forest land and it was, in fact, the land in Gat No. 1029/B which was a 3 wp-4837-10 forest land. It has been further stated that the Taluka Inspector of Land Records, Kankavli re-numbered the Gat numbers and there was inter change between Gat Nos. 1029/A and 1029/B. Consequently, the land in Gat No.1029/A was shown to be a forest land without, in fact, it being a forest land. It has been further submitted by the affiant that by letter dated 18/10/2005 the SDO, Kankavli has submitted a proposal to the Range Forest Officer to delete the land in Gat No.1029/A as a forest land. In our opinion this proposal cannot be considered by the Range Forest Officer. The mistake has been made by the Taluka Inspector of Land Records, Kankavli and he has to correct this record and restore the original record when Mutation Entry No. 1074 was effected in favour of the petitioner on 17/8/2010. There is no justification as to why the Taluka Inspector of Land Records interchanged the entries and consequently the nature of the land. He is not before us nor is there any record to find out the reasons for the same and, therefore, we refrain from making any observations against him in this order. However, it is clear beyond any doubt that the land in Gat No.1029/A is not a forest land and the said Gat number was changed to 1029/B by the Taluka Inspector, Land Records, Kankavli while revising the Akarphod Patrak. Hence, this petition must succeed. 4 wp-4837-10 6. The petition is allowed and Rule is made absolute in terms of prayer clauses (a) and (b). No order as to costs. (U.D. SALVI, J.) (B. H. MARLAPALLE, J.)