Page No.# 1/4 GAHC010230682025 2025:GAU-AS:14750 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/6119/2025 AZIZUL HOQUE SON OF LATE NASHIR UDDIN, ADABARI, SAGAALCHARAA, DHUBRI, ASSAM VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE GOVT OF ASSAM, REVENUE AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI, ASSAM 2:THE DISTRICT COMMISSIONER DHUBRI ASSAM 3:THE CIRCLE OFFICER DHUBRI REVENUE CIRCLE DHUBRI ASSA Advocate for the Petitioner : MR ASRAFUL ISLAM, E HUSSAIN Advocate for the Respondent : SC, REVENUE, GA, ASSAM BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY ORDER 31.10.2025 Page No.# 2/4 Heard Mr. A. Islam, learned counsel for the petitioner; Ms. G. Hazarika, learned Standing Counsel, Revenue & Disaster Management Department for the respondent no. 1; and Mr. B.J. Talukdar, learned Senior Counsel assisted by Mr. P.K. Medhi, learned Junior Government Advocate for the respondent nos. 2 & 3. 2. The case of the petitioner, in brief, is that he is in occupation of a plot of Government land measuring 1 Bigha 4 Kathas 8 Lessas, which is ceiling surplus land, since a long time. The said plot of land is covered by Dag no. 1214 situate at Revenue Village – Adabari Part – 1, Dhubri Revenue Circle, District – Dhubri [‘the subject-plot’] and the subject-plot is a part of an area of land measuring 6 Bighas 4 Kathas 5 Lessas under Dag no. 1214. The petitioner’s name has been recorded in Jamabandi as dakhalker [encroacher] against the subject-plot. 3. The petitioner has approached this Court after he has been served with a notice bearing no. D.B.C. 07/2025/62 dated 00.08.2025 issued purportedly in August, 2025 by the respondent no. 3 under Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules framed under the Assam Land and Revenue Regulations, 1886. In the said notice, the petitioner is shown as one of the four noticees. In the notice, it is stated that the four noticees are in occupation of an area of land measuring 6 Bighas 4 Kathas 5 Lessas under Dag no. 1214 at Revenue Village – Adabari Part – 1, Dhubri Revenue Circle, District – Dhubri. 4. The petitioner has stated that as he is in occupation of the subject-plot since long, he made an application for allotment/settlement of the subject-plot before the authorities on 15.11.2024. But to his surprise, the petitioner has come to learn that the area of 6 Bighas 4 Kathas 5 Lessas under Dag no. 1214 at Revenue Village – Adabari Part – 1, Dhubri Revenue Circle, District – Dhubri has been allotted by the Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Government of Assam on 20.03.2025 in favour of Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Vivekananda Kendra Kannyakumari by issuing a Khiraj Myadi Patta no. 914. 5. The prime contention of the petitioner is that the time period of seven days given in the impugned notice to vacate the subject-plot to the petitioner is clearly against the Page No.# 3/4 mandate of law. 6. Ms. Hazarika, learned Standing Counsel, Revenue and Disaster Management Department and Mr. Talukdar, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the other State respondents have submitted that the petitioner is clearly in unauthorized occupation of the subject-plot, which is a Government land, and the State has the discretion to allot or settle a piece of Government land as per the Land Policy. 7. Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules framed under the Assam Land and Revenue Regulations, 1886 reads as under :- 18[2] When such person has entered into possession of Government khas land, or Waste land or estate over which no person has acquired the rights of a proprietor, land-holder or Settlement-holder or any land that has previously been reserved roads or roadside land or for the grazing of village cattle or for other public purposes, or has entered into possession of land from which he has been excluded by general or special orders and when further, there is no bonafide claim of right involved he may be ejected or ordered to vacate the land forthwith, and the Deputy Commissioner may sell, confiscate or destroy any crop raised, or any building or other construction erected without authority on the land. 8. A Division Bench of this Court in Salak Uddin [Md.] vs. State of Assam and others, 2024 [4] GLT 857 while considering Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules, has inter alia observed that in respect to the waste land/Government khas land/estate, etc. over which no person had acquired the rights of a proprietor, land holder or settlement holder; a indigenous person who is in occupation of such lands under the disposal of the Government would have a procedural legitimate expectation that before taking any decision to evict him, he would be given an opportunity to explain that he had a right to be considered for settlement over the land in his occupation. This right is, however, subject to a caveat that the occupier/possessor submits application for settlement and the Settlement Rules and Land Policy permits such consideration for settlement. The said person would also have a substantive legitimate Page No.# 4/4 expectation that he ought to be considered for settlement over the land in his possession in view of the Land Policy, 2019. This is again subject to filing an application for settlement and the Land Policy, 2019 duly permitting consideration of such application for settlement. It may be that the State may have a more profound reason for eviction in respect to the land in possession on public interest. On Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules, the Division Bench has proceeded to hold that prior to initiation of proceedings under Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules, an occupant/possessor of Government lands has to be issued notice. 9. When in the context of the observations and directions made in Salak Uddin [supra] of the Division Bench and Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules, the impugned notice is looked at, it is evidently clear that the impugned notice falls short of the requirement for the fact that the impugned notice though purportedly issued under Rule 18[2] of the Settlement Rules is an eviction notice without providing for an opportunity to the noticee/petitioner to explain that he has right to be considered for settlement over the subject-plot in view of his alleged occupation and only seven days to vacate has been given. In such view of the matter, the impugned notice bearing no. D.B.C. 07/2025/62 dated 00.08.2025 issued by the respondent no. 3 is set aside and quashed. 10. It is made clear that setting aside and quashing of the impugned notice herein shall not preclude the competent authority to proceed again against the petitioner in accordance with law by providing a due opportunity of being heard to him, who is allegedly found in unauthorized occupation of the waste land/Government khas land/estate, etc. 11. This order disposes of the writ petition. No cost. JUDGE Comparing Assistant