S. No. 7 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH AT SRINAGAR OWP 2005/2013 MOHAMMAD IQBAL WANI AND OTHERS …Petitioner/Appellant(s) Through: Mr. Rizwan Bhat, Advocate. Vs. STATE OF JK AND OTHERS (TOURISM/REVENUE) ...Respondent(s) Through: Mr. Hakim Aman Ali, Dy.AG. CORAM: HON’BLE MR JUSTICE JAVED IQBAL WANI, JUDGE O R D E R (ORAL) 12.03.2025 1. In the instant petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, petitioners herein states that they are the owner in possession of 04 marlas of land falling under Survey No. 2358 situated at Verinag Tehsil Doru, District Anantnag, having vested unto the father of the petitioners upon attestation of mutation under Sections 4 and 8 of the J&K Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976, and after the death of their father unto the petitioners herein. 2. It is being further stated that petitioners intended to raise construction of a residential house over the said piece of land, and in this regard applied for issuance of a building permission before the competent authority, wherein no objections came to be sought from various departments, which were furnished by the said departments being Public Health Engineering Department, Electric Department, and R&B Department, however, no such NOC was furnished by the Revenue Department on one hand, and on the other hand, the petitioners were not permitted to raise any sort of construction thereof, as a consequence whereof the petitioners herein approached this Court through the medium of OWP No. 2005/2013, wherein an interim order came to be passed on 15th of January, 2014, directing maintenance of status-quo with respect to subject matter, and that when the said order was served upon respondents, the respondents came up with an order dated 18th of March, 2014, suggesting setting aside of the mutation attested in favour of the father of the petitioners qua the land in question. 3. The petitioners’ herein have challenged the impugned order dated 18th of March 2014 fundamentally on the ground that the respondents before setting aside the mutations neither issue notice to the petitioners nor provided an opportunity of hearing to them, thus, rendering the impugned order legally unsustainable. 4. Objections to the petition have been filed by respondents, wherein it is being stated that the land in question, in respect of which the mutations were claimed to have been attested in favour of the father of the petitioners, in fact, is State land and is recorded in the relevant revenue records as “Gair Mumkin Sadak”, and that since the said mutations had been attested illegally, as such, same came to be set-aside after holding an enquiry in the matter. Heard counsel for the parties and perused the record. 5. Perusal of the record available on the file manifestly reveals that indisputably, the petitioners have not been issued any notice by the respondents or offered an opportunity of hearing before setting aside the mutations in question. Seemingly, there is violation and breach of fundamental principle of natural justice, rendering, under these circumstances, the impugned order legally unsustainable. 6. Having regard to the aforesaid position obtaining in the matter, the instant petition succeeds as a consequence, whereof the impugned order dated 18th of March 2014 is quashed with a direction to the respondent 4 herein to re-visit and re-consider the case of mutation No’s. 2057 and 2515 qua the land in question under Survey No.2358 and in the process issue notice to the petitioners herein and also offer them an opportunity of hearing and thereafter pass appropriate orders in accordance with law preferably within a period of three months from the date a copy of this order is produced by the petitioners herein before the respondent 4 Deputy Commissioner Anantnag. 7. Disposed of. (JAVED IQBAL WANI) JUDGE SRINAGAR 12.03.2025 Ishaq