HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD LUCKNOW PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION (PIL) No. - 1134 of 2025 Court No. - 1 HON'BLE RAJAN ROY, J. HON'BLE RAJEEV BHARTI, J. 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, Shri Varun Pandey, learned counsel for Union of India-respondent no.1, Ms. Isha Mittal, learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel for State respondent nos.2 to 5, Shri Mohan Singh, learned counsel for Land Management Committee, Amethi- respondent no.6 and Shri Rohit Kumar, Advocate whose Power on behalf of respondent nos.8 to 10 and 12 is taken on record. 2. This petition has been filed styled as Public Interest Litigation seeking the following relief :- "(i) issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding opposite party no 3 to remove the illegal encroachment over reserved forest land of gata No.382 Ka, Kha, Ga, and Gata No-399 Ka, Kha, Ga, Gha which old number Gata no- 157 and is recorded as wood Forest land in revenue record, situated at Village - karundi Gungwashh Tehsil Amethi District Amethi. (ii) issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding opposite party No.3 to decide the application moved by the petitioner on 18.03.2023 contained as Annexure no-6 to this writ petition. Versus Counsel for Petitioner(s) : Amit Kumar Singh, Ramu Patel Counsel for Respondent(s) : A.S.G.I., C.S.C., Mohan Singh Amit Kumar Dwivedi .....Petitioner(s) U.O.I. Thru. Its Addl. Secy.Ministry Of Environment And Climate Change, New Delhi And 16 Others . .....Respondent(s) (iii) issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding opposite party 3 to developed the forest and constructed the boundary wall and planted the trees upon the land of 382 Ka, Kha, Ga, and Gata No-399Ka, Kha, Ga, Gha which old number Gata no- 157 is recorded as wood Forest land, situated at Village - karundi Gungwashh Tehsil Amethi." 3. Learned counsel for the petitioner fairly submitted that all the private respondent nos.7 to 17 are recorded in respect of the land in question based on some orders passed during consolidation operations in 1989 consequent to grant of patta to them in respect of the said land. The petitioner has not been able to demonstrate that the orders passed, if any, in the consolidation operations, in respect of the land in question in favour of the respondents, were ever put to challenge. However, learned counsel for the petitioner has placed reliance upon a recent judgment of Hon'ble the Supreme Court in the case of T.N. Godavarman Thirumalpad vs. Union of India and ors. reported in 2025 AIR Supreme Court 3032 to contend that the land was recorded as forest land in 1359 and 1360 fasli, a fact which is denied by learned counsel for the Gram Sabha Shri Mohan Singh who states that this land was never notified under the relevant statute as forest land. Be that as it may, the fact remains that private respondents are recorded in respect of the aforesaid land since 1989 on 1396 fasli based on some consolidation orders, as informed by Shri Mohan Singh, learned counsel for Land Management Committee, which have never been put to challenge. 4. The remedy before the petitioner would not be by a Public Interest Litigation before the High Court but elsewhere if at all the petitioner before us has any locus standi. The forest department can look into the matter and do the needful, if there is a cause. 5. With the aforesaid observations, this Public Interest Litigation is disposed of. November 11, 2025 Arnima WPIL No. 1134 of 2025 2 (Rajeev Bharti,J.) (Rajan Roy,J.) Digitally signed by :- ARNIMA SINGH High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench