SHANKAR LAXMAN PAWAR Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In our view, this Petition is entirely misconceived. It is an attempt to gain an unfair advantage.

(2.) The Petitioner complaints that land bearing Gut No. 351/A at Village Padli, Taluka Karad, District Satara of 1 Hector 2 R was shown in an e-auction notice. The submission is that the land is "reserved" for the Vadar community, to which the Petitioner belongs, for the purpose of stone quarrying or excavation. It is submitted that there is an exemption for such lands. They are not liable to be put to auction. They are 'required' to be allotted to the members of the Vadar community for carrying out "traditional business" or "traditional activities".

(3.) What is not disclosed is that in the name of this "traditional business" of quarrying or stone excavation the Petitioner proposes to use non-traditional modern mechanised methods including blasting. The submission before us is that it is the activity of excavation and quarrying that is traditional and not the method by which this is done. In other words, a person from the Vadar community may use the most modern methods of quarrying or excavation but that land can nonetheless not ever be put to e-auction or given to any other competitor.