IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.8984 of 2009 1. DINESH KUMAR UPADHYAY S/O LATE RANJEET UPADHYAY. 2. DADAN UPADHYAY S/O VISHWANATH UPADHYAY 3. RAM KUMAR UPADHYAY S/O JATAL UPADHYAY 4. BADRI NATH UPADHYAY S/O SHEO DAYAL UPADHYAY 5. PARSHURAM UPADHYAY S/O SHEO BHAJAN UPADHYAY 6. MADHENDRA UPADHYAY S/O GORAKH UPADHYAY 7. SURESH UPADHYAY S/O LATE SACHIDANAND UPADHYAY 8. DHANJEE SINGH S/O LATE BANGALI SINGH 9. HEERA SINGH S/O MEGHA SINGH 10.MANTU KUMAR S/O SHEO MANGAL LAL 11.PREM SINGH S/O KRISHNA SINGH 12.SIDH NATH DUBEY S/O LATE RAM BADAN UPADHYAY 13.MOHAN UPADHYAY S/O LATE RAM BADAN UPADHYAY 14.BABAN DUBEY S/O SURAJ DUBEY 15. RABINDRA UPADHYAY S/O BAIJNATH UPADHYAY 16.VIJAY SAH S/O RAM BAHADUR SAH 17. BHOLA SAH S/O LATE RAMASHISH SAH 18. SHIVSHISH DUBEY S/O VISHWANATH DUBEY 19. UMESH YADAV S/O SHEO LOCHAN YADAV 20. VISHWANATH UPADHYAY S/O LATE SHIV PUJAN UPADHYAY. 21. BINDHYACHAL UPADHYAY S/O SIDHATU UPADHYAY 22. NARBDESHAR DUBEY S/O BHGWAH DUBEY, ALL R/O VILLAGE ANGRA, P.S. AGION BAZAR, DISTRICT-BHOJPUR. -PETITIONERS Versus 1. THE STATE OF BIHAR 2. THE COLLECTOR BHOJPUR, BIHAR 3. ADDITIONAL DISTRICT MAGISTRATE, BHOJPUR. 4. THE SUB-DIVISIONAL OFFICER, BHOJPUR, BIHAR 5. DEPUTY COLLECTOR, LAND REFORMS, PIRO, BHOJPUR, BIHAR. 6. CIRCLE OFFICER, PIRO PRAKHAND, BHOJPUR,BIHAR. -RESPONDENTS ------- For the Petitioners : M/s Vijendra Nath, Amarendra Kumar & Waliur Rahman 2 For the State : Mr. Ritesh Kumar, AC to AAG 7 13.11.2009 Heard learned counsel for the petitioners, learned counsel for the State and learned counsel representing the landless persons who want the land in issue to be settled with them or to maintain their settlement. Since we do not want to go into merit of the rival claims in the public interest litigation and propose to remit the matter to District Magistrate, Bhojpur at Ara to act in accordance with law, it is indicated for the sake of record that the dispute relates to alleged settling of Ahar-cum-road land of R.S. khata no. 319, R.S. plot no. 192 area 4.53 acres in Settlement Case no. 01 of 2008-09. According to the petitioners, who are residents of village Angara, P.S. Agion Bazar, District-Bhojpur, they have since time immemorial right of passage and irrigation through the public land in question recorded as Ahar-cum-Raasta. On the other hand, the case of the Circle Officer, with whom the settlement case is pending, is that the Ahar-cum-Raasta land has changed its nature and the right of the villagers of having passage as well as irrigation through the lands concerned will not be 3 adversely affected because of settlement of part of those lands existing on other side of the road while the Ahar is existing on the one side of the road. On going through the letters contained in Annexures-4 and 4/A of the reply to the counter affidavit, it is noticed that the Joint Secretary, Department of Revenue and Land Reforms through his letter no. 746 dated 27th July, 2009 has given certain suggestions to the District Magistrate, Ara in respect of the aforesaid dispute and some further direct ions have been given by the Commissioner, Patna Division, to the District Magistrate, through his letter dated 03rd August, 2009. In the facts of the case, the writ petition is disposed of with direction to the District Magistrate Bhojpur at Ara, to keep in mind the aforesaid two letters as well as the policy decision in law relating to settlement of land and after considering the rival claim in public interest, he shall take a final decision in accordance with law at an early date preferably within four months. It goes without saying that the rival parties, that is the villagers and the proposed settlees, will be at liberty to make submissions before the District 4 Magistrate through representations. (Shiva Kirti Singh, ACJ.) (Shyam Kishore Sharma, J.) AAhmad