TINKARI MONDAL Vs. BLOCK DEVELOPMENT OFFICER JOYNAGAR 1

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this Rule the petitioners are claiming that their case for settlement of the railway surplus land within the station limits should also be considered by the Railway authorities. The case is that they had taken settlement of lands which appears to be annual settlements from the Block Development Officer acting on behalf of the Railways and had been in possession of such lands by cultivation on payment of licence fees on renewals. All of a sudden the Block Development Officer expressed his inability to renew the licence as no instruction had been issued to him from the Railways. In this state of affairs the petitioners have approached the Court for issuance of appropriate writ directing the respondents, the Railway authorities, who admittedly own these lands, for granting licenses to them for cultivation of such lands and, not distribute the lands to anybody else other than the petitioners. These lands are situate near and around Bahara Station of the Eastern Railway, Sealdah Section.

(2.) The Rule is being opposed by the Railway authorities who have filed an affidavit-in-opposition to the petition. It is firstly stated that the petitioners have no legal right to take settlement of the Station limits surplus land either from the Railway administration or from the State Government or its officers duly authorised for the purpose. It further appears that the Railway authorities issued a circular bearing No. 342/O/L dated 18-12-73 which should be quoted in extenso to appreciate the Railways' position: EASTERN RAILWAY No. 342/O/L. Dated Sealdah 18-12-73 To The Block Development Officer, P. O. Jaynagar Majilpur, Village Jaynagar Majilpur, Dist. -- 24-Parganas. Sub : Utilisation of surplus cultivable land for Grow More Food Purpose. Surplus cultivable Rly. lands beyond station limits handed over to the State Government are allotted by the State Government through the BDOs and the Rly. lands within the Station limits are allotted by the Rly. Administration among its employees. In recent years there has been some dispute in regard to the allotment of Rly. lands in some areas between the Rly. and the State Government. This dispute in some stations is due to the widening of the limits of the stations for reasons of various kinds of construction works. In order to put an end to such dispute it has now been decided in modification of all previous circulars on the subject, that Rly. lands within the station limits will be distributed by the Rly. among its employees. The area of the station limits will be taken as follows:--

(3.) The purpose of settlement of these lands is utilisation of the surplus cultivable lands for grow more food purpose. If production of food is the reason for settlement the persons like the petitioners who are the actual tillers of the soil appear to be more suitable for the purpose. On the other hand, the Railway employees are its full time employees and it may be said that they will have little time to cultivate lands on their own and further they may not be as efficient or qualified in respect of cultivation as the tillers of the soil like the petitioners. It is further said that in the event of necessity it will be possible for the Railways to get back the land from its employees whenever such occasion arises. This reason has not been expressly or impliedly indicated in the letter we have quoted above. There is no reason or material before us to think that the Railway employees will be so obliging as to vacate possession whenever so called upon by the Railways. In such cases the Railways may have to take recourse to provisions of a Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act 1971. Such Act is available against all including the employees of the Railways as also the other persons for the purpose of obtaining recovery of possession. There may also be an occasion when a settlee who was a Railway employee at the time of settlement goes out of the Railway service and it is not provided that in such contingency he is to restore possession of the land to the Railways.