IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.8013 of 2009 GAURI SHANKAR JHA, Son of Late Narsingh Nath Jha, resident of Village- Satghara, Police Station- Raj Nagar, District-Madhubani............................................Petitoner. Versus 1. The State of Bihar. 2. The Collector, Madhubani. 3. The Anchal Adhikari, Raj Nagar, Police Station-Raj Nagar, District- Madhubani.......................................Respondents. ----------- 4. 07.11.2009. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and the State who has filed counter affidavit on behalf of the respondent nos. 2 and 3 which is taken on record. Petitioner is aggrieved by the order dated 21.12.2006 passed by the Collector, Madhubani, in Misc. Ceiling Case No. 13 of 2005-06 whereunder he has observed that the petition has become infructuous and has terminated the proceeding. It is submitted on behalf of the petitioner that by filing the aforesaid Misc. Ceiling Case, a request was made by the petitioner to reopen the ceiling proceeding on the ground that without hearing the petitioner the subject matter of sale deed has been acquired and included in gazette published under Section 15 of the Ceiling Act. The request has been rejected holding that the prayer is infructuous as the ceiling proceeding in which the acquisition has been made was initiated in the district of Darbhanga and even after creation of the district of Madhubani, petitioner has right to approach the authorities at Madhubani although the sale deed is with regard to the lands of Madhubani District. Counsel submits that the impugned order of 2 Collector, Madhubani, is wholly misconceived as when the land ceiling proceeding was initiated in the district of Darbhanga, Madhubani District was not created and lands being part of Darbhanga district at the time of initiation of the proceeding, the proceeding was initiated by the Collector, Darbhanga, but after creation of separate district of Madhubani the records of the proceedings are required to be transferred to the Collectorate at Madhubani so that any request for reopening the proceeding may be considered by the Collector, Madhubani as the subject matter of the proceeding is now within the district of Madhubani. I see substance in the submission of the counsel of the petitioner and accordingly set-aside the order dated 21.12.2006 passed in Misc. Ceiling Case No. 13 of 2005-06 and direct the petitioner to file a petition before the Hon’ble Minister of Revenue and Land Reforms Department of the State Government to invoke his jurisdiction under Section 45(B) of the Ceiling Act for excluding the lands of the petitioner from the ceiling proceeding. This application is, accordingly, disposed of with the aforesaid directions. U.K. (V.N.Sinha,J)