Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2025 Supreme(Ori) 986

ORISSA HIGH COURT : CUTTACK
ANANDA CHANDRA BEHERA, J.
Jhansi Rani Bosi and Others - Petitioner
Versus
State of Odisha & Others – Respondent
WP(C) No. 26833 of 2024
Decided on : 30-06-2025

Advocates Appeared:
For the Petitioners:Mr. S.K.Dalai,Advocate.
For the Respondent: Ms. J.Sahoo, A.S.C.

The court concluded that the respondent lacked jurisdiction to revisit the validity of the sale deed during mutation proceedings, reaffirming that such matters should be handled by competent legal authorities.

Headnote:This writ petition under Articles 226 and 227 challenges the order dated 27.08.2024 by the Mutation Officer, which recalled prior mutation orders due to alleged lack of jurisdiction following Section 22 of the OLR Act. The court reaffirmed that such proceedings are merely ministerial, focusing on possession rather than ownership. The core issue is whether the Mutation Officer had authority to question a valid sale deed based on alleged non-compliance with land reform provisions when the vendor did not object to the mutation. The court ultimately quashed the impugned order, determining that the recall of previous mutation decisions was invalid.

Table of Content
1. challenging the mutation officer's order regarding land mutation. (Para 1 , 2 , 3)
2. dispute over possession and authority regarding mutation proceedings. (Para 4 , 5 , 6)
3. procedural aspects of mutation versus ownership rights. (Para 7 , 8 , 9 , 10)
4. jurisdictional limits of mutation authorities over sale deeds. (Para 11 , 12 , 13 , 14)
5. final ruling on the invalidity of impugned orders and allowance of the writ petition. (Para 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19)

JUDGMENT :

ANANDA CHANDRA BEHERA, J.

1. This writ petition under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of the India, 1950 has been filed by the Petitioners against the Opposite Parties praying for quashing (setting aside) the order dated 27.08.2024 passed in Misc. Case No.23 of 2024 by the Mutation Officer-cum-Tahasildar, Kashinagar (O.P. No.6).

2. The case of the Petitioners in this writ petition is that, the Petitioner No.1 Jhansi Rani Bosi was the owner of the case land. She (Petitioner No.1) sold the said case land to the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 by executing and registering the sale deed No.10552400468 dated 16.02.2024 after receiving due consideration amount thereof from the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 and delivered possession of the case land to them (Petitioner Nos.2 to 5) and since then, till yet, the vendees of the Petitioner No.1 i.e. Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 had/have been possessing the case land.

After, execution and registration of the sale deed No.10552400468 dated 16.02.2024 by the Petitioner No.1 in favour of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 in respect of the case land, mutation cases vide Mutation case Nos.277 of 2024 and 278 of 2024 were initiated before the Mutation Officer-cum-Tahasildar, Kashinagar (O.P. No.6) for recording the case land in the name of the purchasers thereof i.e. Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 through mutation. After making due enquiry about the possession of the purchasers i.e. Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 on the case land by the Mutation Officer-cum-Tahasildar, Kashinagar (O.P. No.6) in mutation case Nos.277 of 2024 and 278 of 2024, both the mutation cases in respect of the case land were allowed in favour of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 and final orders in mutation case Nos.277 of 2024 and 278 of 2024 were passed for correction of the R.o.Rs of the case land from the name of the Petitioner No.1 to the names of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5.

On the basis of such orders passed in mutation case Nos.277 of 2024 and 278 of 2024 in favour of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5, separate R.o.Rs of the case land vide Khata Nos.170/719 and 170/718 were prepared in the name of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5. But, subsequent to the preparation of the R.o.Rs of the case land in favour of the Petitioner No.2 to 5 on the basis of the final orders passed in mutation case Nos.277 of 2024 and 278 of 2024, the same Mutation Officer-cum-Tahasildar, Kashinagar (O.P. No.6) initiated a Misc. Case No.23 of 2024 suo motu against the Petitioners of this writ petition and disposed of that Misc. Case No.23 of 2024 on dated 27.08.2024 finally and recalled the orders passed in mutation case Nos.277 of 2024 and 278 of 2024 in favour of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 on the ground that,

“the petitioner No.1 has executed the sale deed vide R.S.D. No.10552400468 dated 16.02.2024 in respect of the case land in favour of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 without obtaining required permission under Section 22 of the OLR Act, 1960 suppressing her Caste i.e. Madiga (which is a Schedule Caste) and directed to the record keeper to revert the case land from the names of the Petitioner Nos.2 to 5 to the name of the Petitioner No.1”.

3. On being dissatisfied with the said order dated 27.08.2024 passed in Misc. Case No.23 of 2024 by the Mutation Officer-cum- Tahasildar, Kashinagar (O.P. No.6), the Petitioners (vendor and vendees of the sale deed vide R.S.D. No.10552400468 dated 16.02.2024 in respect of the case land) challenged the same by filing this writ petition jointly praying for quashing (setting aside) the order dated 27.08.