The settlement authorities have acted without jurisdiction in passing the impugned orders and the final publication of the R.O.Rs. under Section 12-B of the Act, 1958 is not sustainable in the eyes of law.

JUDGMENT

K.R. Mohapatra, J. - The Petitioners in all these writ petitions assail the orders of Settlement Authorities under the Orissa Survey and Settlement Act, 1958 (for short 'the Act, 1958'). Although the facts in each of these writ petitions are slightly different from each other, but the question of law involved in all these writ petitions being one and the same, those are taken up together for proper adjudication.

2. W.P.(C) No. 8774 of 2019 has been filed assailing the order dated 23rd March, 2013 passed by the Assistant Settlement Officer, Camp at Rental Colony, Bhubaneswar-Opposite Party No.2 in Objection Case No. 9121/942 of 2012, whereby he rejected the claim of the Petitioner to record Hal Plot No. 648 to an extent of Hc.0.2023 and Plot No. 649 to an extent of Hc.0.3682 under Khata No.894 in mouza Sundarpur and directed to record the same in Government Khata under Abada Jogya Anabadi status.

2.1 The averments made in the said writ petition reveal that one Harekrushna Samantaray made an application for lease of a piece of Government land, which was registered as W.L. Case No. 1356 of 1978. The said W.L. Case was allowed vide order dated 16th April, 1980 and R.O.R. in respect of Plot No. 781/1050 measuring an area of Ac.1.500 decimals under Khata No.176/65 in sthitiban status was issued in favour of said Harekrushna Samantaray. When the lessee was enjoying the leasehold property peacefully, the Additional District Magistrate, Bhubaneswar initiated suo motu Revision Case No. 214 of 1987 under Section 7-A (3) of the Orissa Government Land Settlement Act, 1962 (for short 'the O.G.L.S. Act') and cancelled the lease by order dated 13th August, 1987 and directed the Tahasildar, Bhubaneswar-Opposite Party No.3 to record the case land in Government khata. Being aggrieved, the lessee moved this Court in OJC No. 5589 of 1994, which was allowed vide order dated 25th July, 2000/4th September, 2000 directing the Additional District Magistrate, Bhubaneswar for fresh adjudication of Revision Case No.214 of 1987. Accordingly, the said revision case was heard afresh and vide order dated 14th February, 2003, the Additional District Magistrate, Bhubaneswar dropped the revision case. Pursuant to the order dated 14th February, 2003, the R.O.R. was corrected accordingly in the name of the lessee. Due to his legal necessity, the lessee sold the leasehold property to one Sagar Kar through Registered Sale Deed No. 3493 dated 7th July, 2004. Said Sagar Kar in turn sold the said property to the present Petitioner through his Power of Attorney Holder vide Registered Sale Deed No.3700 dated 1st May, 2007 and delivered possession. By the time the Petitioner purchased the land in question, it had lost its character of being used as agricultural land. As the Petitioner purchased the same for his business purpose, he applied for conversion of the case land, which was registered as OLR Case No.5751 of 2009. The Petitioner was directed to pay conversion charges, i.e., premium and arrear rent, to the tune of Rs.15,170/-, which the Petitioner paid immediately on 30th January, 2009. Since the settlement operation was going on in that the area, the Petitioner approached the Assistant Settlement Officer for preparation of R.O.R. in his name and the said application was registered as Objection Case No.9121/942 of 2012. The Settlement Authority, however, did not take any step for disposal of the said objection case for which the Petitioner approached this Court in W.P.(C) No.22248 of 2013, which was disposed of on 30th September, 2013 directing the Opposite Party No.2 to dispose of the objection case by the end of December, 2013. Since no notice was issued to the Petitioner to participate in the said objection case till 2016, he again filed Misc. Case No. 18246 of 2016 in the disposed of W.P.(C) No. 22248 of 2013. Accordingly, this Court vide order dated 22nd November, 2016 directed the Assistant Settlement Officer to dispose of the said objection case within