Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
Abhijit Maliek & Ors vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors on 11 October, 2023
12
11.10.2023
A.G.M.
In The High Court At Calcutta
Constitutional Writ Jurisdiction
Appellate Side
W.P.A 23933 of 2023
Abhijit Maliek & Ors.
-versus
The State of West Bengal & Ors.
Mr. Soumyajit Bhatta
Mr. Prasenjit De
...For the Petitioners.
Mr. Debabrata Banerjee
Mr. Sasthi Charan Dhara
... For the State.
Affidavit-of-service filed in Court today is taken
on record.
The petitioners are aggrieved by the act of the
Gram Panchayat in performing the Durga Puja over dag
no. 1337 which is recorded in favour of the petitioners.
It appears from the documents annexed to the
writ petition that a Partition Suit being T.S. No. 374 of
2017 was filed by the predecessor-in-interest of the
petitioners and by judgment dated 25th March, 2019,
the learned Court passed the preliminary decree.
The plaintiff was allotted 11 sataks of land and
the defendant was allotted 8 sataks of land. According
to the petitioners, 8 sataks of land has already been
utilised by the Panchayat for construction of road and
the balance 11 sataks belongs to the petitioners.
2
Final decree is yet to be passed.
The petitioners submit that the Panchayat is
giving permission to the puja committee for performing
Durga Puja in such a manner that the free ingress and
egress to the petitioners' plot is being obstructed.
The petitioners rely upon an order dated 5th
September, 2019 passed by a Co-ordinate Bench of this
Court in W.P. 16746 (W) of 2019 (Samares Chandra
Maity -Vs- The State of West Bengal & Ors) wherein the
Court directed that the police will not permit holding of
the Durga Puja on the plot concerned without written
consent of the petitioners.
In the present case, the petitioners are not
inclined to give consent in favour of the puja committee
for holding the Durga Puja in such a manner that their
free ingress and egress to the plot is being obstructed.
Learned advocate representing the State
respondents has obtained instruction from the
Bhadreswar Police Station wherefrom it appears that
the puja in question is held for the last 13 years in the
said place and Panchayat has granted approval to the
Puja committee for holding the Puja.
Admittedly, the Puja in question is not being
performed by the Panchayat, but the Panchayat is
permitting the local puja committee to perform the
Puja.
The Panchayat ought to have obtained prior
written consent from the petitioners before permitting
the Puja committee to perform the Puja. Consent has
not been obtained from the petitioners.
As it has been submitted that the Puja is being
performed for quite some time and the final decree is
awaiting, accordingly, the Court is of the opinion that
the Puja may be performed provided a formal consent is
obtained from the petitioners.
The police shall ensure that free ingress and
egress to the petitioners' plot is not obstructed by the
Puja committee.
Performance of the Puja will not create any right
or equity in favour of the Puja committee to perform
Puja each and every year without obtaining any consent
from the owners of the subject plot.
The writ petition stands disposed of.
Urgent certified photocopy of this order, if applied
for, be supplied to the parties expeditiously on
compliance of usual legal formalities.
( Amrita Sinha, J.)
