The main legal point established in the judgment is the availability of a suitable remedy for addressing grievances related to encroachments through the procedure outlined in the Division Bench Judgment in the case of Jagdish Prasad Meena & Ors. v. State of Rajasthan & Ors.

JUDGMENT

1. The petitioner has approached this Court by way of this writ petition (PIL) with the following prayers:-

"1) By an appropriate writ, order or direction may kindly be issued and the respondents may kindly be directed to earmark of the encroachments upon the land of Khasra No. 987 of Village Kanasar, Tehsil Bap, District Jodhpur forthwith.

2) By an appropriate writ, order or direction, may kindly be issued and the respondent may kindly be directed to conduct, the survey of the Agore & pond land of Khasra No. 986 & 987 of Village Kanasar, Tehsil Bap, District Jodhpur and establish the pillar marks/fencing upon the boundary marks of the Oran land and further provide the safeguard to such land from encroacher.

3) By an appropriate writ, order or direction may kindly be issued and the respondent may kindly be directed to identify all kind of the encroachment upon the land mentioned in the present petition and further take action against the encroacher under the provision of the Jodhpur Development Authority Act and remove all kind of encroachment from the land of Khasra No. 987 of Village Kanasar, Tehsil Bap, District Jodhpur.

4) By an appropriate writ, order or direction may kindly be issued and the respondent may kindly be directed to submit a compliance report of the removal of encroachment."

2. Having heard and considered the submissions advanced by counsel representing the petitioner and, having gone through the material available on record, we are of the firm view that the petitioner has available to him a suitable remedy for ventilating his grievances by virtue of the Division Bench Judgment of this Court in the case of Jagdish Prasad Meena & Ors. v. State of Rajasthan & Ors. passed in D.B. Civil Writ Petition (PIL) No. 10819/2018 decided on 30.01.2019 wherein this Court directed as below:-

"This Court is inundated with large number of writ petitions, styled as public interest litigation, from almost all the Districts of the State, with allegations of encroachment over the pasture land/land of 'johad', 'talab'/river/river bed/public way/Shamshan/Kabristan etc. In all such petitions, common allegation is that despite repeated complaints/representations to the concerned revenue officers, no steps are taken by them to remove the encroachment. This results in number of writ petitions being filed by the complainants/representationists before this Court. This Court has been passing orders in such matters requiring the respective District Collectors to examine the factual content of the allegations and take steps to remove the encroachments so as to secure such land.

In order therefore to provide a pan-Rajasthan solution to this ever persisting problem, we deem it appropriate to direct the Chief Secretary of the State to devise a permanent mechanism, which should be operational in every District of the State where the concerned District Collector should be required to periodically notify for the information of the general public to lodge the complaints/representations with regard to such encroachments with a specially designated Public Land Protection Cell (for short 'PLPC') for rural areas. The PLPC should be headed by District Collector and function under his direction and supervision. The PLPC shall get such complaints/representations enquired into by deputing concerned Sub Divisional Officer/Tehsildar/Naib Tehsildar so as to verify whether or not such encroachments have actually taken place on such land. If the allegations are found to be substantiated, appropriate steps in accordance with law be immediately taken for removal of the encroachments and appropriate penal action be also taken against the trespassers. The complaints/representations received in the PLPC should be decided by passing speaking order, informing the respective complainant/representationist about the action taken. This would obviate the necessity of such complainants/representationists approaching this Court directly by way of public interest litigation