- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 17TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SURAJ GOVINDARAJ WRIT PETITION NO. 4638 OF 2022 (LB-RES) BETWEEN: SRI B KRISHNA MURTHY S/O SRI BYATAPPA AGED ABOUT 56 YEARS RESIDING AT MARAGONDANAHALLI VILLAGE K R PURAM HOBLI BIDARAHALLI HOBLI BANGALORE-560099 …PETITIONER (BY SRI. P B RAJU., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA REP BY ITS SECRETARY PANCHAYAT RAJ AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT MULTISTORIED BUILDING BANGALORE-560001. 2. THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER BANGALORE EAST TALUK PANCHAYAT, MAHADEVAPURA, VIDHANA SABHA CONSTITUTENCY BUDIGERE CROSS OPPOSITE TO GRAND WHEEL FACTORE BANGALORE-560049. 3. PANCHAYATH DEVELOPMENT OFFICER BIDARAHALLI GRAM PANCHAYATH BANGALORE-560049 Digitally signed by SHWETHA RAGHAVENDRA Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 4. THE BLOCK EDUCATION OFFICER DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION DIESEL LOCO SHED ROAD GOVERNMENT HIGHER PRIMARY SCHOOL CAMPUS TRIVENI NAGAR K R PURA BANGALORE-560036. 5. THE HEAD MASTER GOVERNMENT HIGHER PRIMARY SCHOOL MARAGONDANAHALLI K RPURAM POST BANGALORE-560036. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. H.V. BHANUPRAKASH., AAG FOR SMT. CHANDINI SINGH., HCGP FOR R1, R4 & R5; SRI. M. PRADEEP., ADVOCATE FOR R2 & R3) THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO DECLARE THAT THE RESPONDENTS NO.2 TO 3 ARE ENABLED TO CARRY OUT AND EXECUTE THE WORK ONLY ASP ER THE WORK ORDER WHICH AT ANENXURE-H AND NO MORE AND IN PARTICULAR SHALL NOT BLOCK OR ALTER THE NATURE OF THE SCHEDULE B PROPERTY EXISTING ROAD ABUTTING THE R-5 SCHOOL ON ITS NORTHERN SIDE AND ETC. THIS WRIT PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN ‘B’ GROUP, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SURAJ GOVINDARAJ ORAL ORDER 1. The Petitioner is before this Court seeking for the following reliefs: a) Declare that the Respondents No.2 to 3 are enabled to carry out and execute the work only as per the work order which at Annexure-H and no more and in - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 particular shall not block or alter the nature of the Schedule ‘B’ property existing road abutting the 5th Respondent School on its Northern Side; b) Be pleased to grant such other relief or reliefs as this Hon’ble Court may deem fit in the facts and circumstances of the case. 2. The petitioner claims to be the owner of converted land measuring 6 acres 10 guntas situated at Maragondanahalli Village, Bidarahalli Hobli, Bengaluru East Taluk. It is his case that, after conversion, he formed a layout in the said property and sold several sites to various purchasers. According to him, there exists a road situated between the Government School and the Anganwadi, which provides access to his layout, and the respondents are now proposing to close the said road. In that background, the petitioner states that he submitted various representations seeking intervention. As those representations were not acted upon, the present writ petition has been filed seeking appropriate reliefs. - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 3. Upon issuance of notice, the respondents entered appearance. A survey was directed to be conducted and, pursuant thereto, a survey report has been placed on record. The survey report clearly indicates that there is no road in existence between the Government School and the Anganwadi. The report further discloses that the School and the Anganwadi form a single composite property and that it is only on the northern side of the School property that a road exists, which runs around the property adjoining that of the petitioner. 4. When the matter was heard, learned counsel for the respondents was specifically called upon to produce any document indicating the existence of a road between the School and the Anganwadi. No revenue record, village map, survey sketch, or other official document was produced to substantiate the petitioner’s assertion of such a road. - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 5. The petitioner, however, sought to rely upon a memo enclosing a notice dated 10.02.2026 issued by the respondents, contending that the issuance of such notice demonstrates that a road does, in fact, exist. It is submitted on his behalf that the respondents themselves have called upon him not to use the said road and, therefore, the existence of the road stands admitted. On that basis, it is argued that the respondents are now seeking to close a public road, thereby depriving the petitioner and members of the public of access to the layout. 6. Learned Addl. Advocate General, appearing for the respondents, has controverted the said contention. It is submitted that there is no road between the School and the Anganwadi and that the entire extent constitutes a single Government property, part of which is used as a School and the other as an Anganwadi. The notice dated 10.02.2026, according to him, was issued only to restrain the petitioner - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 from using Government land unauthorisedly and cannot be construed as an admission of the existence of a road. It is further submitted that none of the revenue documents reflect the existence of any such road and that the petitioner has alternative access to his property from the northern side. 7. Heard Sri.P.B.Raju, learned counsel for the petitioner, Sri.H.V.Bhanuprakash, learned Addl. Advocate General for Smt.Chandini Singh, learned HCGP for respondents No.1, 4 and 5 and Sri.M.Pradeep, learned counsel for respondents No.2 and 3. Perused papers. 8. Having given anxious consideration to the rival submissions and upon perusal of the entire material placed on record, this Court is of the considered view that the controversy essentially turns upon a singular question—whether there exists a legally recognised public road between the Government School and the Anganwadi? - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 9. Pursuant to directions issued by this Court, a survey has been conducted and the report thereof has been placed on record. The survey report unequivocally states that no road exists between the School and the Anganwadi and that both structures form part of a single, composite Government property. The report further indicates that the only existing road is situated on the northern side of the School property. The findings in the survey report have not been effectively controverted by the petitioner by placing any acceptable material to the contrary. 10. Significantly, not a single revenue document has been produced by the petitioner to demonstrate that the land in question is classified as a road. There is no village map, survey sketch, RTC extract, sanctioned layout plan, or statutory notification reflecting dedication or reservation of the said portion as a public road. In matters concerning public rights over immovable property, documentary - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 evidence assumes primacy. The existence of a road cannot be inferred on the basis of assumption, convenience, or unilateral assertion. 11. The reliance placed on the notice dated 10.02.2026 is wholly misplaced. A notice restraining unauthorised use of Government land cannot, by any stretch of reasoning, amount to an acknowledgment of the existence of a public road. A public road is a matter of record and legal character; it cannot come into existence merely because a person has been using a portion of Government land or because a communication has been issued cautioning against such use. The legal status of land must be borne out from statutory or revenue records and not from isolated correspondence. 12. It is also not the petitioner’s case that access to his property has been completely extinguished. The material on record indicates the existence of an alternative road on the northern side which provides - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 access to the layout formed by the petitioner. The grievance, therefore, is not one of denial of access but one of seeking a more convenient or additional access. Convenience, however, cannot override title, nor can it create rights where none exist in law. 13. The character of land as a public road must be established through legally cognisable material. A private developer cannot, under the guise of asserting access rights, seek to appropriate Government land earmarked for public institutions. The property in question is utilised for a Government School and an Anganwadi which is dedicated to the welfare and development of children. Any attempt to dilute or encroach upon such land on the basis of an unsubstantiated claim would run contrary to public interest and the rule of law. 14. The present proceedings, viewed in their entirety, do not disclose a bona fide assertion of a legally enforceable right. Rather, they reflect an endeavour - 10 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 to project the existence of a road where none is recorded in official documents, with the apparent object of securing private benefit. This Court, exercising jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, cannot lend its approval to such an attempt. 15. In the absence of cogent material establishing the existence of a public road between the School and the Anganwadi, and in light of the categorical findings in the survey report, this Court finds no merit in the writ petition. The petition is accordingly stands dismissed. 16. Having regard to the nature of the claim and the manner in which the litigation has been pursued, this is a fit case for imposition of exemplary costs so as to deter abuse of the writ jurisdiction of this Court. The petitioner shall pay costs of ₹50,000/- (Rupees Fifty Thousand only) to the Bengaluru Professionals Benevolent Fund within a period of four weeks from - 11 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:9736 WP No. 4638 of 2022 today, failing which it will be liable to be recovered as arrears of land revenue. SD/- (SURAJ GOVINDARAJ) JUDGE LN List No.: 2 Sl No.: 40