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2018 DIGILAW 1735 (RAJ)

Johari Lal v. State of Rajasthan

2018-08-16

INDERJEET SINGH

body2018
JUDGMENT Inderjeet Singh, J. - This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner against the order dated 11.06.2007 passed by the Additional District Collector (Third), Jaipur in revision petition no.30/2005 whereby the revision petition filed by the respondent no.3 (hereinafter to be referred as 'revision petitioner') under Section 97 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj, Act 1994 (hereinafter to be referred as 'Act of 1994') was allowed and the order passed by the Gram Panchayat dated 07.07.1997 was set aside. 2. Brief facts of the case are that the petitioner filed an application on 10-7-1996 before the Gram Panchayat, Kushalpur for allotment of a piece of land adjoining to his residential house and on his application the Gram Panchayat, Kushalpura allotted the plot measuring 152 sq. yards to the petitioner vide order dated 07.07.1997. The revision petitioner filed the revision petition before the court below challenging the order passed by the Gram Panchayat and the said revision petition was allowed by the learned Additional Collector vide order dated 11.06.2007 and further directed for auction of the plot in dispute as per Rule 143 of the Rajasthan Panchyati Raj Rules, 1996 (hereinafter to be referred as 'Rules of 1996'). Being aggrieved by the order dated 11.06.2007 the petitioner has filed the present writ petition. 3. Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the Gram Panchayat has allotted the piece of land in favour of the petitioner after following the due procedure of law and there is no illegality committed by the Gram Panchayat in allotment of the piece of land to the petitioner. Counsel further submits that the petitioner is having possession over the disputed land for last 30 years and the revision petitioner has no right to challenge the allotment made by the Gram Panchayat in favour of the petitioner. 4. Counsel for the respondent supported the judgment passed by the learned Additional Collector. Counsel further submits that the Abadi land in Gram Panchayat can be allotted only by way of open auction if the area of the plot is more than 100 sq. yards. Counsel in this regard relied upon Rule 141, 143 & 144 of the Rules,1996 which are reproduced as under:- Rule 141. Sale of Land - All sales of land by a Panchayat shall ordinarily be made through auction unless there are special reasons for not doing so. yards. Counsel in this regard relied upon Rule 141, 143 & 144 of the Rules,1996 which are reproduced as under:- Rule 141. Sale of Land - All sales of land by a Panchayat shall ordinarily be made through auction unless there are special reasons for not doing so. Panchayat may decide to sell such land through auction programme fixed in advance. Case Law Under Rule 141 Gram Panchayat has powers to sell land by auction and Addl. Collector has no jurisdiction in the matter. In absence of any documentary evidence of possession over land a person has no right to claim regularisation of land under Rules, 156 and 157 of Rajasthan Panchayat Raj. Rules, 1996. Allotment of land by Gram Panchayat has to be by public auction. Merely because person has trespassed a Panchayat land would not entitle him to have land sold or allotted to him. Such decision of allotment suffers from virus of colourable exercise of powers, arbitrary, unreasonable, unjust, unfair and in violation of Art, 14 of Constitution. Rule 143. Auction of plots in Abadi Area - (1) Panchayat shall prepare a list of plots including scattered plots within the Abadi Area, keeping in mind the space needed for public streets/roads, drainage and other public purposes. (2) Panchayat shall try to maintain building line, as far as possible, while deciding to auction any scattered plot. (3) Any area of 100sq. Yards or more for residential purposes and 200 sq. feet for commercial purposes shall be auctioned as scattered plot. Rule 144. Allotment of strip of land - (1) Panchayat may allot a strip of land upto 100 sq. yards for residential purposes and 200 sq. ft for commercial purposes at prevailing market price. (2) Strip of land shall be allotted only to such persons whose existing house/shop is adjoining such strip and there is no other applicant for the same. (3) In case more than one person have houses/shops adjoining the strip, it shall be put to auction. 5. Counsel further submits that in the present matter the Gram Panchayat has allotted the piece of land measuring 150 sq. yards without auction and the same is in violation of Rule 143 of the Rules of 1996. (3) In case more than one person have houses/shops adjoining the strip, it shall be put to auction. 5. Counsel further submits that in the present matter the Gram Panchayat has allotted the piece of land measuring 150 sq. yards without auction and the same is in violation of Rule 143 of the Rules of 1996. Counsel further submits that no report was obtained from the site as required under Rule 146 of the Rules of 1996 and the Sarpanch of Gram Panchayat without due procedure of law allotted the piece of land contrary to the provision of Rules of 1996. 6. Heard counsel for the parties and perused the record. 7. The learned Additional Collector after perusing the record of the Gram Panchayat passed the following order:- 8. I have carefully gone through the order passed by the Additional Collector and the argument raised by the counsel for the petitioner deserves to be rejected for the reasons; firstly, I am not inclined to exercise the jurisdiction of this court under Article 227 of the Constitution of India where the learned court below after considering the record has given a finding of fact regarding wrongful allotment of land in favour of the petitioner; secondly, the plot in dispute was allotted to the petitioner in violation of Rule 143 of the Rules of 1996; thirdly, the Gram Panchayat has allotted some part of the land which comes under the Public way. 9 In that view of the matter, the writ petition filed by the petitioner stands dismissed.