JUDGMENT :

Heard Mr. R. Dhar, learned counsel for the petitioner and Ms. G. Hazarika, learned counsel for the respondent No. 1, being the Commissioner and Secretary to the Government of Assam in the Revenue Department. Also heard Mr. K. Gogoi, learned Addl. Senior Government Advocate for the respondents No. 2, 3 and 4, being the Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup(M), the Additional Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup(M) and the Circle Officer, Guwahati Revenue Circle, respectively.

2. The petitioner is admittedly illegally occupying a plot of land measuring 14.5 lechas covered by Dag No.12(old)/97(new) located at village-Birubari, Mouza-Ulubari, Guwahati and he has also constructed a dwelling house over the same. The petitioner is aggrieved by the notice bearing No. G.C.49/2015/2925 dated 10.11.2022 of the Circle Officer, Guwahati Revenue Circle. By the said notice, it is provided that the petitioner is found to be an illegal encroacher on the land covered by Government Dag number under Ulubari Mouza which is recorded in the name of T.B. Hospital and therefore, is directed to vacate the land upon receipt of the notice. It is also provided that otherwise an eviction drive under the law would be carried out against the petitioner. Being aggrieved, this writ petition is instituted.

3. The petitioner refers to an earlier judgment of this Court dated 28.05.2020 in WP(C) No. 962/2020 and a request is made that a similar order can be passed. In the judgment dated 28.05.2020, it was taken note of that the petitioners therein had also made application for allotment of land under the Land Policy of 2019 and in the circumstance, an order was passed that as the matter was under process for considering the claim of the petitioners therein for allotment of land under the Land Policy of 2019, therefore the Deputy Commissioner was directed to pass a reasoned order on such application, which may also be filed within a period of one month from the date of the order and in the interim, not to give effect to the notice under Rule 18(2) of the Rules under the Assam Land and Revenue Regulation, 1886. The said order was passed in the context that Rule 18(2) also contains a condition precedent that there should be no bona fide claim of any right of any person who had entered into possession of any Government land.

4. In the instant case, no such bona fide right of the petitioner is noticed which may require the Court to arrive at a satisfaction that the condition precedent required in Rule 18(2) is also satisfied in this present writ petition. Moreover, it is also noticed that the impugned notice dated 10.11.2022 requires the petitioner to vacate an illegally encroached land which is otherwise a land allotted for the purpose of construction of a T.B. Hospital, which is definitely in the public interest. Any conflict of private interest of the petitioner with that of a public interest, the public interest would prevail. Consequently, we are disinclined to pass any order interfering with the notice dated 10.11.2022 and require the respondent authorities to follow up the said notice, but by following the due procedure of law. In the meantime, as the petitioner makes a statement that she is also entitled to allotment of land under the Land Policy of 2019, the petitioner may submit an application for the purpose and in the event it is submitted, the authorities to process the same, as per law. It is stated that such application had already been filed which is available at page 18 to the writ petition. As the application had already been filed and received by the Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup(M) on 19.06.2020, we require the Deputy Commissioner to further process the said application and bring the same to its logical end preferably by placing the application before the next available meeting of the Land Allotment Committee. In the event the meeting of the Land Allotment Committee would not be held at a near date, we further direct the Deputy Commissioner to const