The Division Judge Bench of the Chhattisgarh High Court, comprising Chief Justice Anup Kumar Goswami and Justice N. K. Chandravanshi in the case of Gram Panchayat, Kandola Through The Sarpanch-Onkar Patel v. The State of Chhattisgarh & Ors has dismissed the Public Interest Litigation filed against creation of a new district namely Sarangarh–Bilaigarh in the State of Chhattisgarh.
Submission of the Petitioner
The Petitioner through the Counsel has prayed for setting aside the notification issued by the State of Chhattisgarh whereby, a new District Sarangarh – Bilaigarh, is sought to be created by exercising the powers under sub-section (2) of Section 13 of the Chhattisgarh Land Revenue Code, 1959 by altering the limits of Raigarh and Baloda Bazar – Bhatapara.
Submission of the Respondent
The Counsel on the behalf of the Respondent submitted that already four public interest litigation petitions are pending, and therefore, there is no justification for entertaining another public interest litigation on the same subject matter.
Reasoning and Decision of the Court
The Court laid emphasis on the Rule 79 (1) of the High Court of Chhattisgarh Rules, 2007 which requires that the petition shall contain the statement of the petitioner whether any petition was filed in this Court relating to the same cause and the result thereof.
Considering the fact, the Court instructed the Petitioner that “he may be permitted to withdraw this application with liberty to file an appropriate application in a pending public interest litigation petition and Liberty is granted to the petitioner to file an application, as prayed for.”
Therefore, the Court dismissed the PIL on withdrawal and expounded that in the event of filing of such application, the same shall be considered in accordance with law .
Case Details
Case: - WPPIL No. 19 of 2022
Petitioner: - Gram Panchayat, Kandola Through The Sarpanch-Onkar Patel
Respondent: - The State of Chhattisgarh & Ors
Judge: Chief Justice Anup Kumar Goswami and Justice N. K. Chandravanshi
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