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2019 DIGILAW 204 (RAJ)

Padma Ram v. State of Rajasthan

2019-01-17

SANDEEP MEHTA

body2019
JUDGMENT : 1. Heard. Perused the material available on record. 2. Issue notice. Mr. Manish Patel, AGC puts in appearance on behalf of the respondents. 3. Learned Counsel for the parties state that identical bunch of writ petitions led by SBCWP No.13015/2017 : Naina Ram vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors., have been decided by this Court vide order dated 20.11.2018 and thus, the instant bunch of writ petitions may also be decided in the same light. The orders which are assailed by the petitioners in these bunch of writ petitions are charted below :- SCHEDULE S. No. S.B.C.W.P. Number and Name of the petitioner Patta No. and date of issuance Date of revisional order 1. 841/2019 Mr. Padma Ram Patta No.19 20.11.2004 30.06.2015 2. 846/2019 Mr. Purkharam Patta No.27 20.11.2004 30.06.2015 3. 852/2019 Mr. Pukhraj Patta No.223 20.11.2004 27.05.2015 4. 884/2019 Mr. Prema Ram Patta No.71 20.11.2004 17.06.2015 5. 886/2019 Mr. Maga Ram Patta No.9 20.11.2004 17.06.2015 6. 898/2019 Mr. Nimba Ram Patta No.64 20.11.2004 30.06.2015 7. 899/2019 Mr. Sharvan Ram Patta No.191 20.11.2004 03.06.2015 8. 901/2019 Mr. Kirta Ram Patta No.188 20.11.2004 27.05.2015 9. 906/2019 Mr. Ragunath Ram Patta No.35 20.11.2004 30.06.2015 10. 910/2019 Mr. Himmata Ram Patta No.57 20.11.2004 30.06.2015 While deciding the identical bunch of writ petitions, this Court held as under:- “Learned counsel Mr. Paramveer Singh Champawat and Mr. Tribhuvan Singh, Advocates representing the petitioners vehemently and fervently urged that the District Collector committed grave error in facts as well as in law while entertaining the revisions in question. The petitioners were in peaceful possession of the land under the questioned pattas for nearly 9 to 10 years before the revisions came to be instituted. The pattas were lawfully issued to the petitioners as per their after making due enquiry and following the requisite procedure provided under the Panchayati Raj Act and the Land Allotment Rules. The revisional authority went on to delve into disputed questions of facts and proceeded to quash the pattas of land lawfully issued to the petitioners without any justification whatsoever. He further submitted that the entire action was perpetrated at the instance of the JDA, which was bent upon to usurp the land in question lawfully owned by the petitioners for the purpose of establishing Sardar Patel Police University. He further urged that in view of the Full Bench decision in the case of Tara & Ors. Vs. He further submitted that the entire action was perpetrated at the instance of the JDA, which was bent upon to usurp the land in question lawfully owned by the petitioners for the purpose of establishing Sardar Patel Police University. He further urged that in view of the Full Bench decision in the case of Tara & Ors. Vs. State of Rajasthan & Anr. reported in 2015 (3) WLN 197 (Raj.), the revisions were liable to the dismissed as being time barred. On these grounds, learned counsel for the petitioners craved quashing of the impugned orders and acceptance of the writ petitions. Per contra, Mr. Manish Patel, learned AGC, representing the Panchayati Raj Department, has vehemently and fervently opposed the submissions advanced by the petitioner’s counsel. He submitted that the disputed pattas were issued in favour of the petitioners without following the due process of law and as such, the District Collector was absolutely justified in quashing and setting aside same by the impugned order, which as per Mr. Patel, does not suffer from any illegality or infirmity warranting interference therein. I have given my thoughtful consideration to the arguments advanced at bar and gone through the material available on record. The first and foremost circumstance, which convinces the court that the revisional authority acted totally in an unjust manner while entertaining the challenge to the subject pattas is that the revisions came to be instituted after nearly 9 to 10 years after the date of issuance of the pattas in question and that too at the instance of the Vikas Adhikari concerned. No reason or cause was set up in the pleadings of the revisions as to why the pattas issued to the petitioners, who belong to the weaker sections of the society were being challenged after a gross delay of 9 years. The administration being the revisionist did not set up a case that it was not aware of these pattas for all these years. Though it is true that the concept of delay does not apply in strict sense to the revisional jurisdiction conferred upon the District Collector by virtue of Section 97 of the Panchayati Raj Act, but while entertaining a revision filed after significant delay, the court has to remain mindful of the reasons behind the delay. If there is no justification whatsoever for the delay, then the revision should normally should not be entertained. If there is no justification whatsoever for the delay, then the revision should normally should not be entertained. Furthermore, Hon’ble Full Bench of this court in the case of Tara (supra) considered the very issue of delay and held that a period of three years should normally be sufficient to be treated to be the outer limit for entertaining a challenge to a patta or any such allotment. Furthermore, on perusal of the impugned order, this court is duly satisfied that no significant shortcoming, illegality or irregularity in the procedure was pointed out by the revisionist Vikas Adhikari while filing the questioned revisions. Considering the fact that the petitioners all belong to the weaker sections of the society, this court is of the firm opinion that the revisional authority was not at all satisfied while entertaining purely disputed questions of facts for setting aside the pattas of land issued to the petitioners way back in the year 2004. On a careful evaluation on facts as well as on law, the impugned orders do not stand to scrutiny, thus, the same are liable to be and are hereby struck down. The writ petitions deserve acceptance and are hereby allowed, as such. The stay applications are also disposed of.” 4. In view of the fact that the lis involved in the instant bunch of writ petitions at hand is ad idem, these writ petitions too deserve to be and are hereby allowed. Thus, the impugned orders passed by the District Collector, Jodhpur whereby the pattas issued to the petitioners were cancelled are quashed and struck down. Stay applications are disposed of. No order as to costs.