JUDGMENT :

Biswaroop Chowdhury, J.

This instant appeal has been preferred by the writ petitioner arising out of an order dated May 3rd, 2024 passed by a learned Single Judge of this Court in a writ petition being no. WPA 16/2022 by which the said writ petition was dismissed. In the writ petition, the appellant had challenged an order dated October 21st, 2021 by which the learned Lieutenant Governor, Andaman and Nicobar Islands had inter alia dismissed the appellant’s prayer for regularization of the land allotted to the appellant.

The case of the appellant/writ petitioner may be summed up thus.

i) The petitioner is a descendant of a pre-42 settler and is in possession of land measuring an area of 180 sq mtr bearing sy No. 1969/2 and 1971/4 area 60 sq mts and 120 sq mts respectively situated at village Aberdeen under Port Blair Tehsil since 1970. Subsequently during the year 1987 the above patch of land was allotted in favour of the petitioner under Section 146(ii) of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Land Revenue and Land Reforms Regulations 1966 (hereinafter referred to as the Regulation) on approval of the competent authority (Respondent No. 1) and license under Form AG-1 (for house site) was also issued.

ii) Subsequent to the allotment the license and formal possession of the land was also made by the revenue authorities and possession certificate has been handed over to the petitioner in presence of two witnesses. Possession certificate clearly indicates handing over of license in Form- AG-1.

iii) The petitioner is in possession of the land till date after the same was handed over to the petitioner and the name of the petitioner appears in the extract of Khasra Register of Village Aberdeen.

iv) The above land being allotted in favour of the petitioner the petitioner has been continuously paying the land revenue to the authorities for 5 years from 1987-1991.

v) The petitioner went to pay the land revenue for the year 1992 but the revenue authorities refused to take the Land revenue. The petitioner was informed that the said plots of land were given on a lease for a period of 5 years to the petitioner, the lease period has expired and the land will be resumed by the authorities very soon.

vi) The petitioner started corresponding with the authorities for correcting the anomaly in the records and to regularize the allotment in petitioner’s favour as a licensee land.

Submission on behalf of the Appellant/Writ Petitioner:-

1. According to the petitioner the license was issued under Form AG-I and the same was allotted under Regulation 146(ii) of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Land Revenue and Land Reforms Regulation, 1966 (hereinafter referred to as the said “Regulation’’) as such the petitioner has been conferred with the rights and liabilities to enjoy the land as license only.

2. It is also the case of the petitioner that when a land given for a specified period the same is only permissible as ‘grant’ under the said Regulation. The same is required to be made in Form AF as mentioned in Regulation 146(i) of the said Regulation read with Rule 164 of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Land Revenue and Land Reforms rules, 1968 (hereinafter referred to as the said “Rules”). Neither the said Regulation nor the said Rules anywhere describes “lease”.

3. The “grant” in respect of a land on the other hand is made for agricultural tenancy only and not for the land specified as House Site and it is also stated that Agricultural land having areas of 60 Sq.mts and 120 Sq.mts cannot exist as a separate survey number (contravenes Rule 48 of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Land Revenue and Land Reforms Rules 1968 both the then existing rule as well as the present Rule position). These can only be survey numbers allotted as License under Rule 145 of the Regulation. Further, the subject land is situated in the heart of the city and cannot by any stretch of imagination be categorized as Agricultural land.

4. The petitioner himself claims to be in physical possession