The court found that a condition imposed on property sale permission that contradicted its purpose for medical expenses was legally unsustainable and redundant.

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 petitioner praying for quashing the imposed condition in the permission for sale granted in his favour under Section 22 of the OLR Act, 1960 on dated 21.06.2022 (Annexure 10) in OLR Case No.14 of 2020 and to allow the petitioner to sell his properties without any condition only on the basis of as usual 10% increase of Bench Mark Valuation.

2. The case of the petitioner in this writ petition is that, he (petitioner) belongs to Schedule Caste Community having his Sub Caste Namasudra and he is the owner of the properties indicated in the Annexure 10.

In order to meet the expenditures of his self-medical treatments, he (petitioner) gave proposal for sale of his properties indicated in the Annexure 10 to the local persons of S.C. and S.T. Community first, but, nobody from the local S.C. and S.T. community was interested to purchase the same. Thereafter, without getting any way, he (petitioner) gave proposal for sale of the same to the local general caste people, as he was in urgent need of money for his self-medical treatments and one person from the general caste community became interested to purchase the same only after the grant of required permission under Section 22 of the OLR Act.

3. For which, in order to sell the properties covered under Annexure 10, he (petitioner) filed an application under Section 22 of the OLR Act vide OLR Case No.14 of 2020 before the appropriate revenue authority i.e. before the Sub Collector, Malkangiri (O.P. No.2) praying for granting him permission to sell the said properties in favour of the general caste people.

4. After considering all the materials as per law, the Sub Collector Malkangiri (O.P. No.2), as per order dated 21.06.2022 (Annexure 10) granted permission to sell the said properties in favour of a person of general caste community imposing the condition in Para No.4 of the said Annexure 10 that,

“sell through registered deed is allowed subject to condition that, the applicant is required to purchase equal area of land of any Kissam in Malkangiri Registration District and the registration of both the land should be made at a time for the purpose of his medical treatments”.

5. On being dissatisfied with the aforesaid imposed condition indicated in the order dated 21.06.2022 (Annexure 10) passed/issued by the Sub Collector, Malkangiri (O.P. No.2), the petitioner challenged the same by filing this writ petition praying for quashing (setting aside) the above condition indicated in Para No.4 of Annexure 10 as well as challenging the Bench Mark Valuation indicated in the said Annexure 10 on the ground that, when the Sub Collector, Malkangiri (O.P. No.2) granted permission vide Annexure 10 to the petitioner for selling his properties to a person other than S.C. and S.T. for his self- medical treatments out of the consideration amounts thereof, then, the above condition imposed in the said Annexure 10 directing him (petitioner) to purchase land equal to the area of sold land on the same time has indirectly made such permission invalid/infructuous. Because, the permission for sale was granted by the O.P. No.2 in favour of the petitioner for no other reason, but only, for his self-medical treatments out of the sold money of the permitted properties, then, how it will be possible on his part to purchase properties equal to the area of the sold land at the same time, when, he (petitioner) has been permitted/allowed for spending the consideration amounts for his self-medical treatments. For which, the condition imposed in Annexure 10