NARAYAN LAL Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SHORT but important question of law arising in this petition is,` can panchayat sell (lkoztfud fcykuke jklrs dh Hkwfe) public land, if the land is not Abadi Land and not belonging to Panchayat ?' The answer would be `no. No one including the panchayat has any right or authority to sell the public land to anyone. The right Vested only in State Government.

(2.) RESPONDENT No. 2 Gram Panchayat awarded patta in favour of the petitioner on 23. 1. 84 in a so called auction. The order - sheet dated 23. 1. 84 which is produced at running page 34 of this petition. in the order of District Collector, Rajsamand (Annex,8) facts speaks for itself. Except the petitioner,no one else offered any bid in the auction. therefore, patta of the land was given to the petitioner at a throwaway price by the panchayat which never belong to it. One Sohan Lal aggrieved by the patta granted in favour of the petitioner by respondent panchayat, filed revision No. 9/97 before District Collector, Rajsamand for cancelling the same on the ground that the land never belong to panchayat and it was a public land, therefore, the panchayat had no right to sell the land and execute the patta in favour of the petitioner. The objection regarding delay in filing the same is raised by the present petitioner before the Disti. Collector. Considering the provisions of Panchayat Act and Panchayat Rules the learned collector was of the opinion that she can revise the order passed by the panchayat in view of Sec. 97 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 and panchayat General Rules, 1961. Learned Collector fo- und that it was a public land, therefore, by her impugned order at Annex. 8 she cancelled the patta granted in favour of the petitioner. Aggrieved of that order, the petitioner has filed this petition. After filing of this petition, by way of additional affidavit the petitioner tried to produce the map on the record of the case by way of amendment. However, permission was not granted in view of the fact that the said document was never produced before the learned Collector and it cannot be allowed to be produced for the first time before this court in a petition filed under Article 226/227 of the Constitution.