IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.8959 of 2023 ====================================================== Shashi Kant Shekhar Son of Sri Jai Prakash Narayan Resident of Flat No.- C/5, Tribhuvan Apartment, Dr. B. Bhattacharya Road, Patel Nagar, P.S.- Shastri Nagar, Patna-800023. ... ... Petitioner/s Versus 1. The State of Bihar through the Chief Secretary, Government of Bihar, Patna. 2. The Principal Secretary, Revenue and Land Reforms Department, Government of Bihar, Patna. 3. The District Magistrate, Siwan. 4. Sub-Divisional Officer, Siwan. 5. District Welfare Officer, Siwan. 6. Circle Officer, Pachrukhi, Dist.-Siwan. ... ... Respondent/s ====================================================== Appearance : For the Petitioner/s : Mr. Rajendra Narain, Sr. Advocate Mrs. Anju Narain, Advocate Mr. Umesh Kr. Roy, Advocate Mrs. Annapurna Sinha, Advocate Mr. Anant Kr. Sinha, Advocate For the Respondent/s : Mr. Sajid Salim Khan (Sc25) ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIV ROY ORAL ORDER 9 10-03-2026 Heard Mr. Rajendra Narain, learned Senior counsel for the petitioner duly assisted by Mrs. Anju Narain and Mr. Arif Daula Siddiqui, learned State counsel. 2. The present petition has been preferred for the following relief(s): “(i) issuance of an appropriate writ including a writ in the nature of writ of mandamus commanding the respondents to forthwith stop their various acts of interference in the peaceful Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 2/11 enjoyment of the property detailed in this writ petition and annexures which were auction-sold / auction-purchased for Rs. 5.63 Cr. on 30.07.2021 to the writ petitioner and others jointly under orders of the Debt Recovery Tribunal (in short DRT), Patna, which has attained finality, and so no one including any of the respondents be permitted to disturb the petitioners in any manner on any occasion for any reasons. (ii) issuance of an appropriate writ including a writ in the nature of writ of prohibition restraining the respondents from taking any forcible possession of the petitioner's auction- purchased land in the name of any work, illegally and erroneously, thinking and treating it to be 'Gair Majarua Malik' land but it is not so as it is 'raiyati' land as obvious from the records of more than 100 years ago and that position has been continuing. It was settled, mutated, mortgaged and decided by the Court to be auction-sold in execution of Court decree and ultimately auction- sold by the DRT, Patna. Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 3/11 Therefore, the action of the respondents in treating the plot no. 2951 of Khata no. 159 of Mauza Jasauli Kherg, P.S. -Pachrukhi, District - Siwan as 'Gair Majarua' / public land and forcibly going to start construction over the petitioner's auction-purchased land, is totally illegal, perverse, unsustainable and unpardonable and so the respondents deserve to be adequately dealt with for such high-handed action. (iii) issuance of an appropriate writ including a writ in the nature of writ of certiorari quashing the communication contained in letter no. 1047 dated 31.05.2023 by the District Welfare Officer, Siwan, to the Circle Officer, Pachrukhi, asking him to get the boundary wall over the land of portion of Plot no. 2951 & 2952 of Khata no. 159, demolished, destroyed on 02.06.2023 with the aid of police force, and proceed for construction. (iv) issuance of any other appropriate writ(s), order(s), direction(s) as may be deemed fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.” Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 4/11 3. The facts relating to the present writ petition is/are as follows: 4. The petitioner and others came to know from advertisement/public notice on behalf of Debt Recovery Tribunal, Patna that in connection with Execution Case no. 03 of 1988 (Central Bank of India vs M/s Industrial Corporation Pvt. Ltd.) which was pending and continuing in the Court of learned Sub-Judge, Siwan, for the execution of decree in favour of ‘the Bank’ in respect of the suit property which got transferred to ‘the DRT, Patna’, on its establishment under the Recovery of Debts (due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993, later amended and known as the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act, 1993) and since then continuing in the DRT as Execution case no. 23 of 1999. 5. In the said execution proceeding and in connection with corresponding RP Case no. 80 of 2000 and 44 of 2001, an order was passed for auction/sale of the properties mentioned in the said public notice to be auctioned on 30.07.2021. Schedule of property containing the various properties of different plot numbers of various khata numbers of Mauza Jasuali Kherg and Mauza Pachrukhi, both in Thana Pachrukhi, District Siwan, and the terms and conditions of the auction were all Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 5/11 given in the said public notice. 6. The further case of the petitioner is that the majority of the lands in question of the then Pachrukhi Sugar Mills were within an enclosed boundary wall lying between the main Siwan - Chhapra railway line/main Siwan - Chhapra PWD road since decades. 7. Further, for the establishment and running of the said sugar mills, the then promoters got various lands transferred in the name of Industrial Corporation Limited through registered deed dated 26.04.1924. The then ex-landlord also settled some lands through registered deed dated 12.06.1921 in favour of the promoters. It also included some gair majarua malik lands also which had been transferred in favour of promoters and so they no longer remained as gair majarua malik lands. 8. Later, Jamabandi was created in favour of the Sugar mills which had taken loan from the Central Bank of India after mortgaging its properties including lands and on account of non-repayment of the loan, the mortgaged properties were put on auction sale and were auction-sold. 9. The petitioner and others participated in the said auction sale of the landed properties. It would be relevant to Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 6/11 state here that in the auction sale of various landed properties of the said sugar mills, for the sake of proper identification and marking of the lands, they had been earmarked as lot wise and blocks of plots with consolidated numbers (different from revenue record numbers of khata and khesra for the purpose of easy identification). 10. The case of the petitioner is that he participated in the auction of lands of various plots of different khata measuring total 14 bigha 8 kattha 8 dhur and alongwith 10 others were jointly announced as the highest bidders at Rs. 5.63 crores decided in their favour. 11. On 18.09.2021, the Recovery Officer of ‘the DRT’, Patna passed an order in R.P. Case No. 80/2000 and R.P. Case No. 44/2001 that the landed properties of M/s Industrial Corporation Pvt. Ltd., Pachrukhi, Siwan (measuring 14 bigha 8 kattha 8 dhur of various plot numbers of different khata nos.) had been auction-sold in favour of the petitioner and 10 others jointly, who had deposited the total amount of Rs. 5.63 crores along with poundage fee of Rs. 5,63,050/-. 12. The details of the land with Khata, Khesra nos, and respective areas of the plots and total measuring 14 bigha 8 kattha 8 dhur were all given in the said order. These lands Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 7/11 include the land measuring 5 kattha 15 dhur of Plot no. 2951 of the said Sugar Mills. 13. The Recovery Officer of the DRT, Patna, also issued the Sale Certificate dated 18.09.2021 in this regard. The contention of the petitioner is that the Plot no. 2951 is a very big plot and parts of it have been sold to other parties/auction- purchasers too. To support the case, a copy of the survey map of the area containing the lands of the Sugar Mills in question has also been attached. 14. Learned Senior counsel for the petitioner submits that not only they got the possession, the District Administration, the Police Officials actually assisted in the process which followed the construction of the boundary wall. The categorical submission with the help of affidavit is that the plot no. 2951 is also part of the decree and purchased by him which is inside the boundary wall so constructed. 15. The submission is that the petitioner was surprised to find the letter no. 1047 dated 31.05.2023 issued by the District Welfare Officer, Siwan and addressed to the Circle Officer, Pachrukhi, Siwan (Annexure-5 to the petition) which recorded that the Scheduled Caste Residential Girls High School can be constructed on the said plot nos. 2951 and 2952 Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 8/11 and for which boundary wall can be demolished. 16. Learned Senior counsel for the petitioner submits that he has no objection to the use of plot no. 2952, but certainly, he being purchaser of the plot no. 2951, the respondents completely acted illegally and knowing well about plot no. 2951 being taken by the petitioners in an auction, the letter was issued when there was summer vacation in the Patna High Court so that the petitioner cannot approach the Court. It was done only on 26.06.2023 by filing the writ petition when the Court reopened. 17. On 02.12.2023, a Bench of this Court directed the State-respondents to file affidavit while granting interim protection to the petitioner. It was followed by this Court by taking up the matter on 18.03.2024 and while rejecting the report submitted by the Sub-Divisional Officer, Sadar as being cryptic in view of the assertion in the writ petition; the District Magistrate, Siwan was directed to conduct a fresh inquiry report and then file an affidavit. 18. Pursuant thereto, a counter-affidavit has come on behalf of the respondents and learned State counsel took this Court to paragraph no. 4 to show that treating the land to be a government land, it was transferred for the construction of Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 9/11 Scheduled Caste Residential Girls High School vide Transfer Record No. 03 of 2018-19 which followed the letter in question. 19. This Court has also taken note of the paragraph no. 6 of the supplementary counter-affidavit filed by the Circle Officer, Pachrukhi, Siwan which clearly shows complete non- application of mind on the part of the respondents. 20. Paragraph-6 of the said affidavit dated 08.10.2024 read as follows: 6. That the above report stated that- “(i) that Khata No. 151, Plot No. 2951, area 3 Bigha 17 Kattha 15 Dhur is mentioned in the decree dated 23.01.1982 passed in T.S. No. 42 of 1977. However, the land transferred for the construction of Schedule Caste Residential Girl High School is Plot No. 2951, 2952 under Khata No. 159. (ii) the photocopy of the certified copy of the said decree has been provided by the petitioner. (iii) that the land possession certificate issued on 15.07.1991 could not be found in Circle Office, Pachrukhi.” Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 10/11 (emphasis added) 21. A perusal of the aforesaid paragraph 6 shows that the respondents actually acknowledge that the plot no. 2951 is part of the decree dated 23.01.1982 passed in the Title Suit No. 42 of 1977. This Court has also gone through the Decree in T.S. NO. 42 of 1977 and column 40 records plot no. 2951. 22. This Court has already recorded the submissions of the learned Senior Counsel that his case is restricted only to the plot no. 2951 and not to 2952. The second affidavit of the State acknowledges that the plot no. 2951 was part of the Title Suit No. 42 of 1977 which followed the auction/sell/purchase of the land by the petitioner and subsequent construction of the boundary wall. 23. In that background, the writ petition succeeds so far as the plot no. 2951 is concerned. The letter no. 1047 dated 31.05.2023 issued by the District Welfare Officer, Siwan to the Circle Officer, Pachrukhi, Siwan (Annexure-5 to the petition) is quashed so far as plot no. 2951 is concerned making it clear that no order is passed so far as the plot no. 2952 is concerned. 24. As the petitioner has suffered for three years for no fault of him as despite paying a huge amount which followed transfer of the land and construction of the boundary wall, still, Patna High Court CWJC No.8959 of 2023(9) dt.10-03-2026 11/11 without looking into all the facts, the order in question was passed which followed demolition, he needs to be compensated. This in the background of the fact that in the last affidavit, the respondents themselves have stated that the plot no. 2951 was part of Title Suit No. 42 of 1977. 25. The cost is quantified as Rs. 10,000/- which will be paid to the petitioner by the respondents in next four weeks and failure to do so, appropriate steps be taken for the realization of the amount in accordance with law. 26. The writ petition stands disposed of with the aforesaid observation. Adnan/- (Rajiv Roy, J) U