The power of requisition under Section 3(1) of the West Bengal Land (Requisition and Acquisition Act, 1948 can only be exercised for the purposes specified in the Act and cannot be invoked for purposes beyond its scope and ambit.

BHAGABATI PRASAD BANERJEE, J.

1. IN this petition the writ petitioners challenged the validity of the order of requisition made under Section 3(1) of the West Bengal Land (Requisition and Acquisition Act, 1948 (West Bengal Act II of 1948 IN respect of a piece or parcel of land containing an area of 10 cottahs 6 chittacks 17 sq. ft., with some structures standing thereon lying at municipal premises No. 1 and 2A, Lansdowne place formerly 10B, Lansdowne Road, Calcutta which was stated to have been requisitioned for the expansion of Ram Krishna Mission Seva Pratisthan Hospital.

2. THE facts of this case is that the petitioner had purchased the said premises No. 1 and 2A, Lansdowne Place, Calcutta by a registered deed of sale dated 23.10.86 executed by one Suchit Kumar Banerjee in favour of the petitioner no. 1 and that on application being made for mutation of name in respect of the said premises, Calcutta Municipal Corporation duly mutated the name of the petitioner in place and stead of Such it Kumar Banerjee on 29th April, 88 and that by virtue of the said deed of conveyance, the petitioner no. 1 became the absolute owner of the said premises. It is stated that on 15th May, 1987 a durwan of the said premises who is engaged by the petitioner informed the petitioner that on that date at about 4 p.m. some unknown persons accompanied by two policemen entered the said premises forcibly in spite of objection made by the durwan in question and forcibly stuck a tin plate at the entrance of the concerned premises and the tin plate bears the inscription therein 'site for Ram Krishna Seva Pratisthan'.

It is the case of the petitioner that no notice either under the West Bengal Land Requisition and Acquisition Act, 1948 West Bengal Act II of 1948 or under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 was ever served upon the petitioners or upon the durwan concerned who was residing at the said premises at the relevant, time. It was further stated on affidavit that no such notice was also hung with any place of the premises in question. The said premises which is stated to have been requisitioned, is butted and bounded by a school, namely South Suburban School which is one of the oldest schools of the area. On enquiry it is stated that the property had been requisitioned under provisions of West Bengal Act II of 1948. It was specifically stated in the petition that no notice and/or order under the provisions of Section 3(2) of the West Bengal Land Acquisition and Requisition Act, 1948 West Bengal Act II of 1948 referred to as the said Act had been served upon the petitioner. It was stated that the purpose for which the said property was requisitioned, cannot be requisitioned under the provisions of the said Act, inasmuch as, the purpose was a permanent purpose and that establishment of a hospital is a project which can be achieved after going through all the procedural steps envisaged under Act I of 1894. It was stated that when there is already an existent hospital under the name of Ram Krishna Seva Pratisthan in the neighboring area, there was no urgency involved for extension of the hospital in question. The said order of requisition was challenged on the ground thai the State Government had no occasion to form the requisite opinion that the said property was required for the purpose mentioned under the said Act.

3. AN affidavit- in- opposition was affirmed on 20th August 1987 by Jayanta Kumar Das on behalf of the state. In the said affidavit- in- opposition it was stated that the proposal bearing no. 3066-L-A (ii) dated 15-5-87 as made by the Land and Land Reforms Department was received by the First Land Acquisition Collector for requisition and acquisition of Land comprised In premises no. 108B, 108C, Sarat Bose Road and 1, 2A, 2B and 4A Lansdowne Place under the West Bengal Land (Requisition and Acquisition Act, 1948 for the purpose of maintaining supplies and services essential to the life of the community namely for expansion of Ram Kris