PRITAM KUMAR Vs. BOARD OF REVENUE AJMER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS petition has been filed challenging the judgment dated 27-3-2012 passed by the Board of Revenue Ajmer (herein after 'the Board') dismissing the petitioners' appeal and upholding the order dated 14-3-2011 passed by the Revenue Appellate Authority Sawai Madhopur.

(2.) THE facts of the case are that the District Collector Karauli vide order dated 16-8-2010 allotted land measuring 3.50 hectare out of 14.11 hectare of khasra No.1419 village Nangal Sherpur Tehsil Todabhim for construction of 132 KV GSS Nangal Sherpur. The said allotment of land was put to challenge by the petitioners on the basis of their alleged possession over the land in dispute claiming that they had acquired khatedari rights over the said land, even though they did not seek for a formal order from the government or a declaration by a competent court. It was stated that consequently the allotment of land 3.50 hectare out of 14.11 hectare of khasra No.1419 village Nangal Sherpur Tehsil Todabhim for the construction of 132 KV GSS Nangal Sherpur to Rajasthan Rajya Vidhyut Prasaran Nigam Ltd. (herein after 'RRVPNL') was wholly illegal, void and therefore liable to be set aside. The challenge was negatived in appeal by the Revenue Appellate Authority vide order dated 14-3-2012 and by the Board under its impugned order dated 27-3-2012.

(3.) COUNSEL for the petitioners has simply reiterated the case set up before the Revenue Appellate Authority and the Board and has submitted that encroachers have a right for allotment of agricultural land under Rule 20 of the 1970 Rules. Counsel however overlooks that the land over which allotment on the basis of possession is claimed was recorded as pasture land and could not be regularised or allotted in the face of the prohibition of Section 16 of the Rajasthan Tenancy Act. In fact it appears that for this reason even an application for allotment of land had not been made by the petitioners and counsel admits that no such application had in fact been made by the petitioners. Further there can be no khatedari by adverse possession more so over pasture land. The petitioners had no right even to consideration for allotment of pasture land even under Rule 20 of the 1970 Rules. Classification of part of land in Khasra No.1419 was in fact changed with reference to circular dated 13-10-2005 issued by the Government. Simultaneous to re-classification of 3.50 hectare in Khasra No.1419 for the specific purpose of its allotment for the public purpose of construction of 132 KV GSS Nangal Sherpur, the allotment was made to RRVPNL. Such development work of public importance cannot be obstructed at the instance of an encroachers without a semblance of legal right.