GUDIALABANDHA GRAMA SASAN Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Government Order in Annexure 3 setting aside the order of the Collector of Mayurbhanj as per Annexure 2 is under challenge in this writ petition.

(2.) The petitioner is the Gudiala-bandha Grama Sasan in Badasahi Community Development Block of the Sada Subdivision within the district of Mayurbhanj. Opposite party No. 2 is the Lakhanasahi Grama Sasan within Khunta No. 1 Community Development Block of Udala Subdivision within the district of Mayurbhanj. The petitioner's case is that there has been a cattle market from many years past running in the village Balijoda within the jurisdiction of Gudialabanda Grama Sasan and this cattle, market is held on each Saturday. During the year 1979, the residents of Lakhanasahi Grama Sasan (Opposite party No. 2) decided to hold a cattle market at village Dukura on Saturday every week. This new cattle market at Dukura being situated at a distance of about 9 kilometers from Balijoda seriously affected the volume of transactions held in the cattle market at Balijoda. Although the market at Dukura is ordinarily held on Tuesday and Friday every week, the residents of Lakhanasahi Grama Sasan had deliberately chosen to select Saturday as the day for their new cattle market. The Izradar of the Balijoda cattle market made a representation on 2-4-1979 to the Block Development Officer, Badasahi Block, the Sadar Subdivisional Panchayat Officer, the District Panchayat Officer and the Collector of Mayurbhanj for redress. The Block Development Officer of Badasahi and the Sarpanch of the Gudialabandha Grama Panchayat lodged a formal complaint with the Collector against the conduct of opposite party No. 2 in holding the cattle market at Dukura on Saturday. It was alleged that the cattle traders were being unlawfully restrained from moving to Balijoda market and that there was an unhealthy competition between the two Grama Sasans. The Collector decided that the new cattle market held at Dukura on Saturday should be stopped, but the opposite party No. 2 may have the cattle market on the weekly market days at Dukura, that is, on Tuesday and Friday. The order of the Collector is purported to have been made in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 109 of the Orissa Grama Panchayat Act, 1964 (vide Annexure 2). Thereafter the State Government of Orissa by a telegram dated 21-4-1979 granted stay of operation of the Collector's order in Annexure 2. Ultimately the State Government decided that both the cattle markets at Balijoda and Dukura may run side by side on Saturday (vide Annexure 3). The petitioner challenges the order of the State Government as illegal and without jurisdiction,

(3.) In the counter filed by opposite party No. 2 it is maintained that the cattle market at Balijoda came into being for the first time in the year 1968 and that the cattle market at Dukura has been functioning on each Saturday for the last many years. It is also contended that the Collector did not adjudicate the dispute under Section 146 of the Act and passed the order in Annexure 2 in exercise of his powers under Section 109 of the Act without affording an opportunity to the opposite party No. 2 of being heard in the matter. It is accordingly urged that the Collector's order was illegal and without jurisdiction and that the State Government being the supreme authority in the matter of allocation of public properties to Grama Panchayats are competent to issue administrative directions and were perfectly justified in issuing the directions as per Annexure 3.