Eviction of encroachers from reserved forest land requires lawful notice detailing specific land claims and adherence to principles of natural justice.

JUDGMENT :

Rajesh Mazumdar, J.

Heard Mr. S.K. Ghosh, learned counsel for the petitioners. Also heard Mr. D. Gogoi, learned standing counsel for the respondents in the Forest Department and Ms. N. Bordoloi, learned standing counsel for the respondent in the Revenue Department.

2. This writ petition, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, has been preferred by 26 (twenty six) writ petitioners, raising a grievance that the respondents in the State Government have sought to initiate an eviction process against the petitioners by issuing a general notice of eviction on 01.10.2022.

3. The petitioners claim to be indigenous people having their residential houses over patta land situated in the Goalpara district adjacent to reserved forest areas. The petitioners’ grievance is that the respondents, without conducting any survey and without serving notice being served upon the petitioner as required in law, had entered into the patta land of the petitioners and destroyed the crops and houses thereon, which has led to reasonable apprehension that the respondents would evict the petitioners without following the due process of law.

4. Mr. Ghosh, learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that the petitioners have physical possession over the land which are identified as patta land and this fact would be reflected in different copies of the chitha of surveyed villages for the relevant revenue circles within the Goalpara district, which have been annexed to the writ petition and which are not disputed by the respondents. Mr. Ghosh has submitted that even as the petitioners were enjoying peaceful and uninterrupted possession and usage of the land in issue, the respondent No. 5, i.e., the Divisional Forest Officer, Goalpara Forest Division had issued a general notice on 01.10.2020, calling upon public at large and requiring those who were encroaching forest land to vacate from such forest at the earliest. Mr. Ghosh has submitted that pursuant to the said notice, the officials of the respondent authorities had entered into the land under the possession of the petitioners and tried to evict the petitioners by destroying the crops and other standing structures.

4.1. Mr. Ghosh has further submitted that in view of the settled position of law, the respondents have acted illegally on the basis of a general notice, without any identification of the land which the respondents would refer to have been encroached and therefore, the impugned action of the respondents deserves interference of this Court.

5. The respondent Nos. 4 and 7 have filed their affidavit-in-opposition. By referring to the aforesaid affidavits, Mr N Das and Mr. I Borthakur, learned counsel for the respondent No. 4 and respondent no 7 have submitted that a meeting was held in the conference hall of the Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Goalpara along with officers of the Forest Department and all Circle Officers of the district, and it was resolved that the District Forest Officer (T), Goalpara would identify the areas falling under the reserved forest, that a joint verification would be conducted by concerned Circle Officer and officials of the Forest Department to look into if there were any encroachments, and further, after identification of the encroached area, the District Forest Officer will take necessary steps for wide publicity among encroachers to move away from