Page No. 1/6 GAHC010018502025 2025:GAU-AS:1356 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : WP(C)/585/2025 MUNIBOR KOCH DEKA @ MUNIBOR DEKA S/O- LATE KEROU KOCH DEKA @ KEROU DEKA, VILL.- NIBIRA GAON, P.O. AND P.S.- KHETRI, DIST.- KAMRUP (M) (ASSAM), PIN.- 782403. VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 2 ORS. REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE GOVT. OF ASSAM, LAND REVENUE DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GUWAHATI-6. 2:THE DISTRICT COMMISSIONER KAMRUP(M) HENGRABARI KAMRUP(M) ASSAM PIN- 781036. 3:THE CIRCLE OFFICER SONAPUR REVENUE CIRCLE KAMRUP(M) ASSAM Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. S S AHMED, MS R DEKA,A S CHOUDHURY,MR. S UDDIN Advocate for the Respondent : SC, REVENUE, GA, ASSAM Page No. 2/6 BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY ORDER Date : 10.02.2025 Heard Mr. S.S. Ahmed, learned counsel for the petitioner; Ms. P.R. Mahanta, learned Standing Counsel, Revenue Department for the respondent no. 1; and Mr. S. Baruah, learned Junior Government Advocate, Assam for the respondent nos. 2 & 3. 2. The petitioner has claimed that he is a joint pattadar of a plot of land, measuring 1 Bigha 1 Katha and 2 Lessas, covered by Dag no. 154 and Miyadi Patta no. 112, situate at Revenue Village – Nibira Gaon, Mouza – Dimoria, Sonapur Revenue Circle, District – Kamrup [Metro] [‘the subject-plot’, for short]. 3. The petitioner has stated that his brother is the other co-pattadar in respect of a subject-plot. According to the petitioner, each of the two co-pattadars have inherited half of the portion of the subject-plot. He is stated that in order to demarcate the subject-plot and to cause perfect partition of the subject-plot, the petitioner had submitted two nos. of Representations, dated 05.11.2024 and dated 02.01.2025, before the respondent no. 3 through an attorney holder. As the Representations have not been given due consideration by the respondent no. 3 to demarcate the subject-plot as well as to cause perfect partition of the subject-plot, the petitioner has approached this Court by the instant writ petition. 4. Ms. Mahanta and Mr. Baruah have both submitted that both the matters of demarcation and perfect partition are public services, which come within the ambit and scope of the Assam Right to Public Services Act, 2012, as amended. 5. In so far as perfect partition is concerned, the State Government by a notification no. AR.69/2011/Pt-II/98 dated 10.04.2013 has notified the Designated Public Servant, Appellate Authority, Reviewing Authority, stipulated time limit, user charge for delivery of notified services, etc. as under :- Page No. 3/6 Serial No. 23. Notified public service Perfect partition in case of no objection from co-pattadars Stipulated time limit for providing the service [Days] Total 90 [ninety] days, if no objection from any person is filed during the proceeding. [20 (twenty) days for LM/10 (ten) days for SK’s report and 7 (seven) days for process Servers report] Designation of Designated Public Servant Circle Officer/ Circle Officer [Attached] Designation of Appellate Authority Additional Deputy Commissioner nominated by Deputy Commissioner Time limit for disposal by Appellate Authority [Days] 30 days Designation of Reviewing Authority Commissioner of Division Time limit for disposal by Reviewing Authority [Days] 30 days Documents to be enclosed with the application 1. Photocopy the original patta/Jamabandi where the applicants name is recorded as pattadar. 2. An affidavit stating that the applicant is in absolute possession of the quantum of land applying and his/her specific share over the plot of land. 3. Up to date Land Revenue paying receipt/Clearance certificate User charge, if any [in Rupees] Rs. 2000/- [in Guwahati Municipal Corporation are]; Rs. 100/- [in rural areas]; Rs. 1000/- [in urban areas] Eligibility criteria to obtain service 6. By an Office Memorandum bearing no. RRG.18/2017/Pt/163 dated 21.12.2020 of the Government of Assam in the Revenue and Disaster Management [Reforms] Department, demarcation has been declared to be a notified service under Section 4 of the Act. For ready Page No. 4/6 reference, the contents of the Office Memorandum dated 21.12.2020 are extracted hereinbelow in its entirety :- GOVERNMENT OF ASSAM REVENUE & DISASTER MANAGEMENT [REFORMS] DEPARTMENT ASSAM SECRETARIAT [CIVIL] : DISPUR GUWAHATI-6 No.RRG.18/2017/Pt/163 Dated Dispur the 21st December, 2020. Office Memorandum Subject: Declaration of services under Revenue & D.M. Department as per provision of the Section 4 of the Assam Right to Public Service Act, 2012. With a view to provide the delivery of Public Service to the eligible citizens within stipulated time limit the following service of the Revenue & D.M. Department has been identified as Notified service under Section 4 of the Assam Right to Public Services Act, 2012. Service Name: Demarcation Certificate [where there is no dispute on title] An important service which is provided by the Revenue & Disaster Management Department is the issue of Demarcation Certificate. This certificate is required to establish the real extent/interest of the land and to establish actual boundary of a particular Dag as per cadastral map of the revenue village/town. This service can be obtained in the Offices of the Circle Officers. Eligibility Criteria: Any citizen of Assam who is recorded Pattadar of the scheduled land can avail this service. Procedural Steps for Issuance of Demarcation Certificate: The applicant has to apply in Standard Application format before Circle Officer of the concerned Circle and Circle Officer will endorse the same to the concerned Dealing Assistant/Copyist. The Page No. 5/6 Dealing Assistant/Copyist after verifying the application, forwards to the concerned Lot Mandal for field verification. Lot Mandal submits the field verification report to Supervisor Kanungo for verification and Supervisor Kanungo after verifying the report forwards to the Circle Officer. Circle Officer, based on the report submitted by Lot Mandal and Supervisor Kanungo approves/rejects the demarcation application. Once demarcation is allowed by the Circle Officer, the Dealing Assistant prepares a notice regarding the demarcation of the proposed land and it is served to all the co-pattadars of the concerned Dag and pattadars of the adjacent Dags and sends it to Circle Officer for signing. The LM then visits the S/L on the fixed date and demarcate the concerned Dag in presence of all the stakeholders. Documents to be annexed along with the Application: 1. Applicant must submit duly signed Application form mentioning details if the scheduled dag. 2. Up to date land revenue receipt. User Charges: Rs. 30/- Citizen Charter: Annexure-1 Time-line: 30 [thirty] working Days. 7. It is settled that if there is an alternative, efficacious and adequate remedy, then a person should avail that remedy instead of approaching this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. If it is a case of simple demarcation and perfect partition, as it has been projected by the petitioner, the petitioner should avail the remedy by applying for the notified public services [demarcation and perfect partition] under the Assam Rights to Public Services Act first by approaching jurisdictional Designated Public Servant by submitting the prescribed application form and by depositing of the requisite user charges. On receipt of such application, the jurisdictional Designated Public Servant shall acknowledge the same and shall proceed to dispose of the said application as per the procedure laid down in the Act within the stipulated time period prescribed for the said notified public service [demarcation]. It is accordingly observed. Page No. 6/6 8. In view of the availability of the alternative and efficacious statutory remedy, the writ petition is not entertained, reserving the liberty to the petitioner to avail statutory remedy under the Act, available to him under the law. JUDGE Comparing Assistant