SARPANCH GRAM PANCHAYAT Vs. STATE OF CHHATTISGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has filed the instant Public Interest Litigation seeking direction against the respondent authorities to provide spacious road for approaching the Community Health Centre situated at Village Tilkeja, as also to provide gifted land to the petitioner, which is around 0.32 acres, which is to be broadened by the members of the Gram Panchayat for easy access to the said Community Health Centre.

(2.) The petitioner is an elected Sarpanch and representative of the Janpad Panchayat, Korba and Gram Panchayat Tilkeja. The State of Chhattisgarh has constructed a Community Health Centre for the betterment of the people of said Gram Panchayat. It is submitted that the subject land bearing Khasra No.306, ad measuring 0.32 acre, is situated within the territory of village Tilkeja, having Patwari Halka No.12/8, which is duly registered in the Revenue Records of Tahsil Bhainsma and District Korba. The original owner of the land namely, Shri Baman Rao, son of Pilaji Rao, gifted the said land to the State Government vide gift deed dtd. 20/8/1985. Thereafter the said land was allotted to the Department of Health Services by the then Government of Madhya Pradesh and necessary entry in the Revenue Records has been made on 9/2/1988. It is pleaded in the petition that the subject land was never owned by the respondent No.5, however, respondent No.5 illegally occupied the said land. The land bearing Khasra No.306 contains an area 2.18 acre and out of the same, 0.25 acre is being used as a cremation ground, mango garden and a Kachcha Road, which is also reflected in the record of the Tehsildar. The land was earlier in the name of the then landlord Mr. Dhanraj Kunwar, which was later on used by the villagers for the purpose of reaching the cremation ground. The land bearing Khasra Nos.306 and 359 is used for transportation of dry woods to the cremation ground.

(3.) The then landlord Shri Dhanraj Kunwar had gifted the said land to Shri Baman Rao, son of Shri Pilaji Rao in the year 1963 and thereafter the land was mutated in the name of Shri Baman Rao. The State Government has constructed the Community Health Centre on the land which was gifted by Shri Baman Rao. On 9/3/2005, an order was passed by the respondent No.5 in respect of 0.30 acre of Khasra No.306/1, and the land was accordingly mutated. The respondent authorities had constructed the Community Health Centre over Khasra No.309 whereas in Khasra No.306, only 5 feet road has been provided by the respondent No.5 for approaching the Community Health Centre and the cremation ground. Thereafter respondent No.5 has approached respondent No.4 for modification of the order dtd. 9/3/2005 whereupon respondent No4 vide order dtd. 20/9/2005 directed for updation of the recorded map.