JUDGMENT :

The present writ petition has been filed for quashing the notice as contained in memo no. 660 dated 19.08.2020 (Annexure-4 to the writ petition) as well as the notice as contained in memo no. 904 dated 28.10.2020 (Annexure-6 to the writ petition) issued by the respondent no.4 – the Circle Officer, Govindpur, Dhanbad under the Provision of Section 3 of the Bihar (now Jharkhand) Public Land Encroachment Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act, 1956”) wherein it has been alleged that the petitioner has encroached the land appertaining to New Khata No. 142, New Plot Nos. 1492 and 1623 (Old Plot Nos. 220, 224 and 225), Mouza - Susnilewa, Thana No. 88, measuring an area of 15.5 decimals (hereinafter referred to as “the said land”) which is a public land. Further prayer has been made for quashing the order dated 06.11.2020 passed by the respondent no. 4 in Encroachment Case No. 01/2020-21, whereby it has been held that the said land is a public land and the petitioner has been directed to remove encroachment from the said land. The petitioner has also prayed for issuance of direction upon the respondents to correct the entries with respect to the said land in the khatiyan prepared after revisional survey in which the same is recorded as “Hawai Adda”, however, from the very beginning, the same is a raiyati land and has never been acquired by the respondent authorities.

2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the land appertaining to Khata No. 41, Plot Nos. 220, 224 & 225 measuring an area of 1 decimal, 10 decimals and 27 decimals respectively (total area 38 decimals) of Mouza- Susnilewa, Thana No. 88 under P.S. Barwadda Chowki, District -Dhanbad was originally purchased by Mukund Lal Ganeriwal by virtue of registered sale deed dated 10.02.1961. Mukund Lal Ganeriwal died leaving behind his two sons namely, Yatindra Nath Ganeriwal & Banwari Lal Ganeriwal and one daughter namely, Smt. Leelawati Devi Agrawal as his legal heirs. Since Yatindra Nath Ganeriwal and Banwari Lal Ganeriwal died issueless, the said land exclusively came in the share of Smt. Leelawati Devi Agrawal being the sole surviving legal heir of Mukund Lal Ganeriwal. Accordingly, the said land was mutated in her name and rent was also paid to the erstwhile State of Bihar under Thoka No. 232. Thereafter, Smt. Leelawati Devi Agrawal sold the said land measuring an area of 38 decimals to the vendor of the petitioner (M/s J.S. Enterprises) by virtue of a registered sale deed dated 14.02.2011 and after that the vendor of the petitioner had been in continuous uninterrupted possession of the said land by getting the same mutated in its name. The jamabandi of the said land was also opened in its name and the rent was being paid by it under Thoka No. 931. The petitioner purchased part of the said land measuring an area of 6 decimals out of total area of 38 decimals from M/s J.S. Enterprises vide registered sale deed no. 6571 dated 07.07.2015 and jamabandi of the said land was opened in his name.

3. It is further submitted that 13 decimals of the land appertaining to Plot Nos. 224 & 225 of the said khata has also been purchased by Smt. Suman Agrawal, the wife of the petitioner vide registered sale deed no. 6570 dated 07.07.2015 which has been mutated in her name and rent for the same is being paid by her to the State Government. Suddenly, the petitioner received notices as contained in memo no. 660 dated 19.08.2020 and memo no. 904 dated 28.10.2020 issued by the respondent no. 4 under Section 3 of the Act, 1956 calling upon him to file show cause reply along with evidence by presenting himself before the said respondent as to why encroachment from the said land be not removed. The petitioner submitted his reply claiming his title and possession over the said land.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner further submits that even if some wrong entry has been made in the Khatiyan recently uploaded on the website of Department of Revenue, Registration and Land Ref