IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.526 of 2004 1. RAJ KUMAR MANDAL 2. BANARSI MANDAL, BOTH SONS OF LATE DIVAL RAI 3. MOST. TETRI DEVI, WIDOW OF LATE DIVAL RAI. 4. KEWAL MANDAL SON OF LATE JAYA DEV MANDAL, 5. YOGENDRA PASWAN SON OF LATE PARMESHWAR PASWAN ALL OF VILLAGE- AND P.S. DANDKHORA, DISTRICT- KATIHAR – PETITIONERS. Versus 1. THE STATE OF BIHAR THROUGH THE CHIEF SECRETARY, BIHAR, OLD SECRETARIAT, PATNA. 2. THE SECRETARY, HOME (POLICE) DEPARTMENT, BIHAR, OLD SECRETARIAT, PATNA. 3. THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR, KATIHAR. 4. THE SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, KATIHAR. 5. THE S.D.O., KATIHAR. 6. THE DEPUTY COLLECTOR, LAND REFORMS, KATIHAR. 7. ANCHALADHIKARI, DANDKHORA, DISTRICT - KATIHAR. 8. PANCHANAND MAHTO MUKHIYA, SON OF LATE ADHIK MAHTO, RESIDENT OF VILLAGE- DANDKHORA, DISTT.- KATIHAR. – RESPONDENTS. ********* For the petitioners: Sri Devendra Kumar Sinha, Sr. Adv. With Mr. Baleshwar Kamat, Adv. For the State : Sri Satish Kumar Sinha, A.C. to S.C. 1. For respondent no.8 : Sri Nawal Kishore Agrawal, Sr. Adv. With Mr. D.N.Tiwari & Mr. Vijay Anand, Advocates. ********* 3/ 05-04-2011 Heard the parties. 2. The petitioners have approached this Court by filing the present writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India raising a grievance that the respondent-authorities in collusion with respondent no.8, the Mukhiya of the Gram Panchayat, are trying to forcibly occupy the lands belonging to the petitioners by virtue of settlement Parwana, as contained in Annexures-1 and 2, for the purposes of construction of a police station building at village- Dandkhora. 2 3. The facts are not in much controversy in the present proceeding. Admittedly the lands of plot no. 1251 and 1252 total area being 2.56 acres, situate at village- Dandkhora, District- Katihar were recorded as “Gairmajarua Bihar Sarkar” belonging to the State of Bihar. As per averments made in the counter affidavit filed by respondent no.3 also, the officials of the respondent- State in the district of Katihar started different settlement cases in the year 1978 for settlement of aforesaid government lands to 67 landless and poor persons for the purpose of construction of their residential houses and for using the same as homestead lands. According to the petitioners, one Dibal Rai, father of petitioner no. 1 & 2 and husband of petitioner no.3 was issued settlement parwana on 19.12.1978 settling an area of 0.019 acre (One decimal and Nine Kari only) from plot no. 1251 and 1252, appertaining to khata no. 1048. Similarly petitioner no.4 was allotted 0.019 acre of land through settlement Case No. 45 of 1977-78 from aforesaid plot no. 1251 and 1252 and petitioner no. 5 was also settled 0.019 acre of land from the aforesaid plot of land through Settlement Case No. 48 of 1977-78. 4. Learned counsel for the respondent-State, by placing reliance on the averments made in the counter- affidavit filed on behalf of respondent no.3, submits that it 3 is true that the petitioners were settled lands in the year 1978 from plot no. 1251 and 1252. He further submits that as a matter of fact, altogether 67 persons, including the father of petitioner no. 1 & 2 and petitioner no. 4 & 5 were settled 0.019 acre (1 decimal and nine Kari) each for their homestead site. It has been categorically stated in paragraph-4 of the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the respondent District Collector that out of total area of 2.56 acres of plot no. 1251 and 1252, only 1 acre 27 decimal and 3 Kari has been settled amongst 67 landless persons including the petitioners and still 1 acre 28 decimal and 7 Kari land is vacant and unsettled, out of which 86 decimals and 3 kari land has been selected for the purpose of construction of police station building of Dandkhora Police Station. 5. It is further contended that in compliance of the order passed by this Court in C.W.J.C. No. 1126 of 1996, a police station building is required to be constructed at village- Dandkhora in the district of Katihar but that building is being constructed on the government land, which has not been settled and is still vacant. Lands settled to the petitioners or their ancestor have been excluded and these lands are not being used for the purpose of construction of police station building at village- Dandkhora. 4 6. Learned counsel for respondent no. 8 also submits that the lands allotted to the writ petitioners or their ancestor shall not be used for the purpose of construction of police station building. He submits that in compliance of the order of this Court, the police station building shall be constructed at village- Dandkhora on the lands either donated by the people or exclusively belonging to the State of Bihar. 7. After having heard the parties, this Court is of the considered opinion that a police station building is required to be constructed at village- Dandkhora in compliance of the order/direction issued by this Court in C.W.J.C. No. 1126 of 1996 (Basant Kumar Chaudhary vr. State of Bihar & Ors.), but that building shall not be constructed on the lands allotted to the petitioners through documents, contained in Annexure-1 & 2, and reference of which has been made in the documents as contained in Annexure-A to the counter-affidavit. Since, the settlements made in favour of the petitioners or their ancestor have been admitted by the respondent- District Collector and admittedly, aforesaid settlement has not been cancelled as yet by adopting the procedure prescribed under law, therefore, the respondents are hereby restrained from unlawfully evicting the petitioners from the lands belonging to them on the basis of settlement parwana, referred to 5 above. 8.. However, it goes without saying that the respondent-authorities can proceed with the construction of the police station building on the government lands, referred to above, or any gifted land, but by excluding the lands settled to the petitioners or their ancestor. 9. With the aforesaid observations/directions, the present writ petition stands disposed of. BTiwary/ ( Birendra Prasad Verma, J.)