Uttarakhand High Court
WPMS/1977/2021 on 22 September, 2021
IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND
AT NAINITAL
ON THE 22nd DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2021
BEFORE:
HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE MANOJ KUMAR TIWARI
Writ Petition (M/S) No. 1977 of 2021
BETWEEN:
Lakhiram and others ...Petitioners
(By Mr. Tapan Singh and Mr. Sanjay Singh, Advocates)
AND:
Surendra Singh and others ...Respondents
(Mr. I.P. Kohli, Standing Counsel for the State/respondent no.3)
JUDGMENT
By means of this writ petition, petitioners
are challenging the order dated 15.04.2021 passed
by Deputy Director of Consolidation, Haridwar
passed in Revision No. 59 of 2019-20 filed by
respondent nos. 1 & 2 under Section 48 of the U.P.
Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953 (hereinafter
called "the Act").
2. By the said order, revision, filed by
respondent nos. 1 & 2, has been allowed and the
order passed by Settlement Officer Consolidation on
26.09.2019 and also the order passed by
Consolidation Officer, Roorkee on 31.12.2018 have
been set aside and Consolidation Officer has been
directed to pass appropriate order afresh, in
accordance with law, after making spot inspection
and also after hearing the parties.
3. The impugned order emanates from
proceedings under Section 21(1) of the aforesaid
Act. Petitioner nos. 1 and 2 are brothers, while
petitioner no. 3 is wife of petitioner no. 2.
4. Petitioner No.3 purchased 0.262 hectare
land in Khata No. 28 Gata No. 108 through a sale-
deed dated 16.08.2016. Petitioner no.2 also owned
1 Bigha 10 Biswa 11 Biswani land in Gata No. 119/3
m while petitioner no 1 owned 1 Bigha, 10 Biswa &
11 Biswani land in Gata No. 113/2 m, 119/3 m and
121/3 m.
5. Since consolidation operations were going
on in their village, therefore, they jointly made a
request to Assistant Consolidation Officer to allot
them adjoining Chak (plot), so that their holding is
consolidated. Accordingly, Assistant Consolidation
Officer prepared a provisional scheme, which was
objected by some tenure holders, therefore, the
matter was sent to the Consolidation Officer.
6. Consolidation Officer decided the matter
vide order dated 31.12.2018. Since the holding of
respondent nos. 1 & 2 was disturbed by the order of
Consolidation Officer, therefore, they challenged the
order, passed by Consolidation Officer, by filing an
appeal under Section 21(2) of the aforesaid Act,
which was numbered as Appeal No. 426, on the
ground that they are entitled to be allotted the Chak
(plot) in their original holding in terms of Section 19
(1) (f) of the Act, on which their tube-well and one
room exists. They further contended before the
Appellate Court that they should be allotted the
Chak (plot) at the place of their original holding, so
that the development made by them on their
holding, may not go to someone else. The said
appeal, filed by respondent nos. 1 & 2, was
dismissed by learned Settlement Officer,
Consolidation, Roorkee, Haridwar vide judgment
dated 26.09.2019.
7. Respondent nos. 1 & 2 thereafter filed
revision under Section 48 of the aforesaid Act, which
was numbered as Revision No. 59 of 2019-20. The
said revision has been allowed by learned Deputy
Director Consolidation, Haridwar vide judgment
dated 15.04.2021, which is under challenge in the
present writ petition.
8. Heard Mr. Tapan Singh, learned counsel
for the petitioners, Mr. I.P. Kohli, learned Standing
Counsel for the State of Uttarakhand and perused
the record.
9. Learned Revisional Court has given
cogent reasons for setting aside the orders passed
by Consolidation Officer and Settlement Officer,
Consolidation. In the humble opinion of this Court
interference with the judgment rendered by
Revisional Court would be uncalled for.
10. Section 19 (1) (f) of the U.P.
Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953, which is
relevant in the present case, is extracted below for
ready reference:-
"19(1)(f) every tenure-holder is, as far as
possible, allotted the plot on which
exists his private source of irrigation
or any other improvement, together
with an area in the vicinity equal to
the valuation of the plots originally
held by him there:"
11. From the impugned judgment, it is
apparent that the Deputy Director, Consolidation
had made a spot inspection in the presence of the
parties and he found that Chak (plot) No. 141-A has
been allotted to the revisionists (respondent nos. 1
& 2), far away from their original holding.
12. In such view of the matter, learned
Deputy Director, Consolidation has set aside the
orders passed by Subordinate Authorities and
directed the Consolidation Officer to pass order
afresh, after hearing the parties and making spot
inspection.
13. Section 21(3) of the U.P. Consolidation
and Holdings Act, 1953 provides that the
Consolidation Officer shall, before deciding the
objections, and the Settlement Officer,
Consolidation, may, before deciding the appeal,
make local inspection of the plots in dispute after
notice to the parties concerned and the
Consolidation Committee.
14. Since the Consolidation Officer as well as
Settlement Officer, Consolidation had not made local
inspection of the plots, while dealing with the
matter, and he had noticed discrepancy in allotment
of Chaks (plots) therefore, learned Revisional Court
was justified in remanding the matter back to the
Consolidation Officer to proceed with the matter
afresh in terms of Section 21(3) of the Act.
15. Even otherwise also, by the impugned
judgment, rights of the parties have not been
determined and no prejudice is caused to the
petitioners, therefore, any interference with an order
of remand would be unwarranted.
16. For the aforesaid reasons, this Court is of
the opinion that this writ petition amounts to abuse
of process of law, such unnecessary litigation not
only delays the exercise of consolidation of holdings
but it also leads to unnecessary litigation for the
poor agriculturists.
17. In such view of the matter, the writ
petition is dismissed with cost of ₹10,000/-, which
shall be deposited by the petitioner in Uttarakhand
State Legal Services Authority, within three weeks
from today, failing which, the same shall be
recoverable as arrears of land revenue.
(MANOJ KUMAR TIWARI, J.)
Shubham
