The court emphasized the authority of the Tehsildar to implement orders regarding common pathways and clarified jurisdictional issues following the bifurcation of Tehsil.

ORDER :

1. By virtue of this petition, the petitioner seeks a direction to respondent No. 3, i.e., the Tehsildar, Akhnoor, to implement the order dated 1st November 2014, passed by the Court of Regional Director, Survey and Land Records (Ex-Officio Settlement Officer) (with powers of Collector under Land Revenue Act), Jammu, in the case titled ‘Mehar Singh vs. Hazara Singh and another’, bearing File No. 814/SOJ, decided on 01.11.2014.

2. A strip of land measuring 2 Kanals 10 Marlas, along with Gair Mumkin Kassi, was used as a common pathway co-shared by the petitioner and other villagers. The petitioner’s land adjoined the said land, and the pathway was being used by him to access his land for cultivation.

3. The Girdawari for the 2 Kanals and 10 Marlas of pathway land was changed by respondent No. 4 in connivance with the field staff unauthorizedly, thereby obstructing the passage and pathway leading to the petitioner’s ownership land. The wrong entry was made by the Girdawar Circle in the year 1994.

4. The petitioner approached the Tehsildar, Akhnoor, for restoring the common pathway of the petitioner and other co-sharers in the Shamlat Deh land. The application of the petitioner was dismissed by the Tehsildar, Akhnoor, on 14.05.2010. Aggrieved of the same, the petitioner filed an appeal before the Court of the Regional Director, Survey and Land Records (Ex-Officio Settlement Officer) (with powers of Collector under the Land Revenue Act), Jammu, who heard the matter and decided the same on 01.11.2014, by holding as under:

“Thus, Respondent No. 2 is set ex-parte. The appellant has prayed for setting aside the impugned order. Heard both parties at length. The record indicates that it is 7 Kanals 19 Marias of land recorded as Shamlat Deh Khasra No. 1546. Out of it, 02 Kanal 10 Maria has been recorded in the name of Hazara Singh S/O Bhag Singh in the year 1994/Rabi by the Girdawar. The appellant is aggrieved by the order of the Tehsildar, where he had filed the case for correction and deleting the entries. The record indicates that the Naib Tehsildar has also, vide his No. 277/NT/Akh dated 30-06-2003 and 1232/NT/Akh dated 26-02-2010, recommended for restoration of the pathway. It is also true that the Girdawar has no power to change the Girdawari entries, especially on Shamlat land being used for a common pathway. There are cases where the Shamlat land is used for common purposes irrespective of its nature of entries reflected in the records. The court of the Tehsildar should have taken note of this and not allowed the entries made by the Girdawar Quanungo to stand on this Shamlat land in violation of the circular instruction of Financial Commissioner (Revenue) J&K FC/CS/Misc-1648-97 dated 22-12-97. Thus, for such reasons, the order passed by the lower court is found erroneous with legal infirmity. The appeal is allowed, and the impugned order is set aside. Tehsildar to pass fresh orders within one month. Stay order, if issued, is vacated. File be consigned to records after its completion.”

5. The petitioner thereafter served a copy of the order dated 01.11.2014 to the Tehsildar, Akhnoor, for redressal of his grievance, but the Tehsildar, Akhnoor, did not comply with the said order. The petitioner is thus aggrieved by the inaction of respondent No. 3 with respect to the directions passed by the Court of the Regional Director, Survey and Land Records (Ex -Officio Settlement Officer) (with powers of Collector under the Land Revenue Act), Jammu.

6. In the objections filed by the respondents, it is submitted that on 21.10.2014, Tehsil Akhnoor was bifurcated, and a new Tehsil, Maira Mandrian, came into existence, and the area under dispute fell under the jurisdiction of the newly created Tehsil. Therefore, respondent No. 3 is not competent to comply with the order passed by the Court of the Regional Director, Survey and Land Records (Ex-Officio Settlement Officer) (with powers of Collector under the Land Revenue Act), Jammu, and it is the T