Madras High Court
D.Sethuraman vs / on 7 October, 2025
Author: Anita Sumanth
Bench: Anita Sumanth
W.A.(MD)No.2884 of 2025
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
DATED: 07.10.2025
CORAM:
THE HONOURABLE DR.JUSTICE ANITA SUMANTH
AND
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE C.KUMARAPPAN
W.A.(MD)No.2884 of 2025
D.Sethuraman ...Appellant
/Vs./
1. State of Tamil Nadu,
Represented by its Secretary,
Department of Revenue,
Fort St. George,
Chennai - 9.
2. The District Collector,
Sivagangai District,
Sivagangai.
3. The District Revenue Officer,
Office of District Revenue Officer,
Sivagangai District,
Sivagangai.
4. The Revenue Divisional Officer,
Office of Revenue Divisional Officer,
Devakottai,
Sivagangai District.
1/8
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W.A.(MD)No.2884 of 2025
5. The Tahsildar,
Tirupathur Taluk,
Sivagangai District. ...Respondents
PRAYER:- Writ Appeal - filed under Clause XV of Letters Patent Act, to
set aside the order made in W.P.(MD)No.19303 of 2024 dated 04.07.2025
on the file of this Court and allow the Writ Appeal.
For Appellant : Mr.A.Haja Mohideen
For Respondents : Mr.D.Sadiq Raja
Additional Government Pleader
JUDGMENT
(Judgment of the Court was made by DR.ANITA SUMANTH, J.)
The writ petitioner is the Appellant. He is an ex-service man
and had sought a mandamus directing the respondents to assign him the
land in S.No.34/3, admeasuring 1.10.0 hectares, Manakudi Village,
Devakottai Taluk, Sivagangai District, ('land in question') as per Revenue
Standing Orders-15(3) and 15(13) ('RSO'). He also refers to a
recommendation made by the District Collector on 12.10.2020 in
Na.Ka.No.C2/21083/2011 and an order passed in WP(MD)No.8282 of
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2011 on 26.07.2011.
2. The writ petition had come to be dismissed by way of
impugned order dated 04.07.2025, wherein the learned Judge notes that
the appellant had reiterated the same prayer in an earlier writ petition.
Learned Judge concludes, and rightly, that the claim of assignment of
land cannot be made by the Appellant as a matter of right. Reference is
made to the detailed counter filed by the respondents, wherein the
particulars of the landholdings of the petitioner and his family members
had been set out. Hence, and in view of the position that allotment of
government land under RSO was intended for the landless and moreover,
was discretionary, the writ petition had come to be dismissed.
3. We have heard Mr.A.Haja Mohideen, learned counsel for
the appellant and Mr.D.Sadiq Raja, learned Additional Government
Pleader for the respondents.
4. We are in agreement with the order of the writ Court. We
have also perused RSO-15(3) and (13). Undoubtedly, the RSO provides
for assignment of land for the purpose of cultivation to various categories
of persons including ex-service men, who are eligible for such
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assignment. RSO-15(3) provides for land assignment to 'Only landless
and poor persons who are likely to engage themselves in direct
cultivation'. It is the case of the petitioner, that he is already cultivating
the subject land, of which he seeks assignment. However, this is
disputed by the respondents.
5. That apart, the Appellant is neither landless nor poor, both
of which are pre-conditions for assignment of the land. A perusal of
RSO-15(3)(i), (ii) and (ii)(a) make it clear that it is only upon satisfaction
of the condition set out therein that an assignment can be made. In the
interests of completion, we extract the clauses below:-
“(3) Who are eligible for assignment:- (i) Only
landless and poor persons who are likely to engage
themselves in direct cultivation shall be eligible for
assignment of land free of land value subject to the conditions
of assignment, imposed in the 'D' Form patta. Co-operative
societies consisting entirely of landless and poor persons who
are likely to engage themselves in direct cultivation, shall
also be eligible for cost free assignment of both valuable and
non-valuable lands provided lands are available in compact
blocks.
G.O.No. 296. Rev. dt. 10.2.1954
B.P.Mis.No. 1791, dt. 21.12.1956
(ii) Political sufferers and ex-servicemen as such
shall not be eligible for assignment of land free of cost except
as provided for below. Such of them as are landless and poor
shall, however, be eligible for assignment just as any other
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landless and poor persons
(ii) (a) The serving personnel or Ex-servicemen are
eligible for assignment of Government waste land (available
for assignment) only for bonafide rehabilitation purposes and
that assignments to the serving personnel and Ex-servicemen
cannot be claimed as a matter of right.”
6. The conditions for assignment must be that the beneficiary
must be landless, poor and the assignment must be for bonafide
rehabilitation purposes. Evidently, such assignment cannot be claimed as
a matter of right.
7. In the present case, the appellant does not satisfy the pre-
conditions set out under RSO and, as rightly pointed out by the learned
Judge, his family members own parcels of land. The scheme under the
RSO is envisaged for a laudable purpose and the claim of the petitioner
falls four of the parameters set out thereunder.
8. That apart, the petitioner had, in addition to WP(MD)No.
8282 of 2011, also instituted WP(MD)No.14898 of 2013 seeking an
identical prayer, as in WP(MD)No.19303 of 2024 that had come to be
disposed on 26.07.2022 directing consideration of the same request in
accordance with the RSO, if he were eligible. We cannot countenance
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repeated and identical requests, ad nauseam, particularly, when the
appellant does not satisfy the required scheme conditions.
9. In light of the above discussion, and finding no justification
to intervene in the order of the writ Court, this writ appeal stands
dismissed. No costs.
[A.S.M.J.,] & [C.K.J.,]
07.10.2025
NCC :Yes/No
Index :Yes/No
Internet :Yes
sm
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TO:-
1. The Secretary,
Department of Revenue,
Fort St. George,
Chennai - 9.
2. The District Collector,
Sivagangai District,
Sivagangai.
3. The District Revenue Officer,
Office of District Revenue Officer,
Sivagangai District,
Sivagangai.
4. The Revenue Divisional Officer,
Office of Revenue Divisional Officer,
Devakottai,
Sivagangai District.
5. The Tahsildar,
Tirupathur Taluk,
Sivagangai District.
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DR.ANITA SUMANTH, J.
AND
C.KUMARAPPAN, J.
sm
Order made in
Dated:
07.10.2025
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