- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA, AT DHARWAD DATED THIS THE 18TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R. KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 105518 OF 2018 (S-DE) BETWEEN: 1. JAMBUNATH S/O. BHOOTAPPA MAJJAGI AGE: 48 YEARS, OCC: SERVICE, TAHASILDAR HAVERI, NOW SERVING AS TAHASILDAR, KARWAR, R/O. GANDHI NAGAR, DHARWAD, DIST: DHARWAD. 2. MANJUNATH S/O. GUDDAPPA DASAPPANAVAR, AGE: 46 YEARS, OCC: SERVICE, R/O. SHIRESTEDAR, TAHASILDAR OFFICE, HAVERI, DIST: HAVERI. …PETITIONERS (BY SRI. SUNIL S.DESAI AND SMT. SHEBA A.KHANAPUR, ADVOCATES) AND: 1. THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER HAVERI, DIST: HAVERI. 2. THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER HAVERI, DIST: HAVERI. 3. THE TAHASILDAR HAVERI, DIST: HAVERI. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. ASHOK T.KATTIMANI, AGA) Digitally signed by SAMREEN AYUB DESHNUR Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA DHARWAD BENCH - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASH THE IMPUGNED ENQUIRY REPORT DATED 13.08.2018 BEARING NO.SIBBANDI/VAHI-61/2018-19 SUBMITTED BY RESPONDENT NO.2 VIDE ANNEXURE-E AND DIRECT THE RESPONDENTS NO.1 TO CONSIDER THE APPLICATION DATED 25.08.2018 FILED BY THE PETITIONERS BY REJECTING THE IMPUGNED REPORT AND DIRECTING THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER TO RE-ENQUIRE INTO THE MATTER AFTER HEARING THE PETITIONERS IN THE MATTER, IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE AND EQUITY AND ETC. THIS WRIT PETITION COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN ‘B’ GROUP THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: ORAL ORDER (PER: THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R. KRISHNA KUMAR) In this petition, petitioners seek the following reliefs: “(a) Issue a Writ in the nature of Certiorari quashing the bearing impugned enquiry report dtd: 13-08-2018 bearing No.SIBBANDI/VAHI- 61/2018-19 submitted by Respondent No.2 vide ANNEXURE-E, in the interest of justice and equity. (b) Consequently, Issue Writ in the nature of Mandamus directing the Respondents No.1 to consider the application dtd: 25-08-2018 filed by the Petitioners by rejecting the impugned report and directing the Assistant Commissioner to re- enquire into the matter after hearing the Petitioners in the matter, in the interest of justice and equity. (c) Pass such other order or orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit to grant in the - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 circumstances of the case, including an order as to costs, in the interest of justice and equity.” 2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and learned counsel for the respondents and perused the material on record. 3. A perusal of the material on record will indicate that certain persons claiming to be tenants in respect of lands bearing Sy.Nos.34/1 and 34/2 of Kulenur village, filed applications in Form No.7 seeking grant of occupancy rights in their favour. The said applications filed by the tenants having been opposed by the landlords, the Land Tribunal proceeded to reject the applications filed by the alleged tenants vide order dated 01.10.1980, as a result of which the landlords became entitled to get the Khata restored/mutated into their respective names. Accordingly, they approached petitioner Nos.1 and 2, who were working as jurisdictional Tahasildar and Shrestedar, who considered the said requests and mutated the Khata and - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 changed/restored the revenue records in favour of the original landlords. 4. Subsequently, on 09.12.1999, land bearing Sy.Nos.81/1A/1, 85/1A/1 and 143, were declared as excess lands under Section 63 of the Karnataka Land Reforms Act, 1961, by the Assistant Commissioner/Land Tribunal. Under the said order, after having declared the aforesaid lands as excess lands in the hands of the landlords, the Assistant Commissioner/Land Tribunal allotted portions of the said lands in favour of 39 persons/beneficiaries. The said beneficiaries/allottees approached the petitioners seeking grant of patta in their favour in respect of the said allotted lands. The said request was accepted by the petitioners, who accordingly issued patta in favour of the beneficiaries/allotees in the year 2017. 5. Subsequent to the aforesaid events, the respondent No.2/Assistant Commissioner submitted the impugned report vide Annexure-E dated 13.08.2018, to the - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 respondent No.1/Deputy Commissioner inter alia alleging that the aforesaid acts on the part of the petitioners i.e., Tahasildar and Shirestedar in restoring/mutating the Khata in favour of the original landlords were instances of misconduct and that the petitioners were guilty of allotting government lands in favour of various private persons. Aggrieved by the impugned report at Annexure-E dated 13.08.2018, the petitioners are before this Court by way of the present petition. 6. A perusal of the material on record, will indicate that two allegations have been made against the petitioners, who were the jurisdictional Tahasildar and Shirestedar in the year 2017-18; firstly, that they had mutated/restored the khata in respect of land bearing Sy.Nos.34/1 and 34/2 in favour of the original landlords/land owners in the year 2017; secondly though 39 persons had been allotted lands as beneficiaries by the Assistant Commissioner/Land Tribunal, vide order dated 09.12.1999, the petitioners had issued patta in favour of - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 different persons and thereby committed acts of professional misconduct and illegal distribution of government lands. 7. A perusal of the material on record will indicate that in so far as lands bearing Sy.Nos.34/1 and 34/2 were concerned, when the alleged tenants filed applications in Form No.7 seeking grant of occupancy rights, the khata in respect to the said lands were not standing in the name of the landlords; however, subsequent to the application in Form No.7 being dismissed by the Land Tribunal vide final order dated 01.10.1980, it was petitioners i.e., the Tahasildar and Shirestedar who were the competent/jurisdictional authority to give effect to the order of the Land Tribunal and restore/mutate the khata into the name of successful original landlord/land owner in terms of Sections 128 to 131 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act. In this context, it is pertinent to note that merely because the petitioners being Tahasildar and Shirestedar acted in conformity with the provisions contained in Sections 128 to - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 131 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act and restored/mutated the khata into the names of the original landowners/landlords pursuant to the order of the Land Tribunal rejecting Form No.7 filed by the tenants, it cannot be said that the petitioners were guilty of any misconduct or any other offence alleged to have been committed by them. Under these circumstances, the said allegations made in the impugned communication/report vide Annexure-E dated 13.08.2018 deserve to be quashed. 8. Insofar as the allegations made by respondent No.2/Assistant Commissioner against the petitioners in relation to issuing patta in favour of non-beneficiaries/non- grantees of portions of lands bearing Sy.Nos.81/1A/1 and 85/1A/1 and Sy.No.143 is concerned, the names of the various 39 persons who are stated to be beneficiaries/allotees in the order of the Assistant Commissioner/Land Tribunal dated 09.12.1999 and the alleged persons mentioned in the impugned communication at Annexure-E will indicate that the petitioners have issued - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 patta in favour of either the grantees/beneficiaries or their family members after exercising/conducting due diligence and verification. It is therefore clear that this act of issuing patta in favour of various persons pursuant to the order of the Assistant Commissioner/Land Tribunal declaring the aforesaid lands as excess lands also cannot be construed or treated as an act of professional misconduct or the petitioners having committed any other offence; at any rate, mere negligence or dereliction of duty on the part of the petitioners in allegedly issuing patta in favour of persons other than the persons who were shown as beneficiaries/allottees in the order of the Assistant Commissioner/Land Tribunal by itself could not have been made the basis to come to the conclusion that the petitioners were guilty of either committing offences or misconduct as wrongly held by the Assistant Commissioner in the impugned communication. 9. It is also pertinent to note that subsequent to the aforesaid order dated 09.12.1999 passed by the Assistant - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 Petitioner/Land Tribunal declaring the aforesaid land as excess land and issuing of patta by the petitioners in favour of various persons, the original landowners challenged the Land Tribunal original order dated 09.12.1999 in a series of litigations which culminated before this court in W.P.No.110664/2017 disposed of on 28.03.2019, W.P.No.104797/2022 disposed of on 14.02.2023, W.P.No.102426/2023 disposed of on 23.05.2023, W.P.No.104663/2023 disposed of on 07.09.2023, W.P.No.100823/2024 disposed of on 09.02.2024 and W.P.No.100254/2024 disposed of on 22.11.2024. Pursuant to the aforesaid orders, the khata has been restored to the name of the original landowners and consequently the patta said to have been issued by the petitioners have also been cancelled as a result of the aforesaid orders. Under these circumstances also, the impugned report deserves to be questioned. 10. A perusal of the impugned communication at Annexure-E dated 13.08.2018 will also indicate that the - 10 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC-D:12646 WP No. 105518 of 2018 said report has been submitted by respondent No.2/Assistant Commissioner to respondent No.1/Deputy Commissioner without notifying or issuing any notice to the petitioners nor conducting any enquiry or hearing the petitioners thereby violating principles of natural justice. Under these circumstances, the impugned report at Annexure-E being violative of the principles of natural justice, the same deserves to be quashed on this ground also. 11. In the result, I pass the following ORDER (i) Petition is hereby allowed. (ii) Impugned report at Annexure-E dated 13.08.2018 and all further proceedings pursuant thereto are hereby quashed. Sd/- (S.R. KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE SMM- upto para 5 EM-para 6 to end Ct:vh / List No.: 1 Sl No.: 34