The court emphasized the importance of curbing criminal activities and illegal land grabbing to uphold the rule of law and democracy.

( 1 ) THIS petition reveals a startling state of affairs where acts of wanton behaviour committed by persons in high authority accused of gross criminal assault and trespass are not only not punished but are rewarded with conferment of rights by authorities.

( 2 ) THIS petition was filed nearly four years ago. On 26. 4. 1999 this Court granted standing counsel one month to file counter-affidavit. By that order notice was also issued to respondent nos. 5 to 8 returnable at an early date. On 10. 5. 1999 registered A. D. notices were issued to respondent Nos. 5 to 8 fixing 28. 5. 1999. There is an office report dated 16. 7. 1999, which states that in compliance to the Court order dated 26. 4. 1999 notices were issued to the respondent Nos. 5 to 8 by registered A. D. post fixing 28. 5. 1999. Neither the acknowledgment nor undelivered cover has been received back after service. The same is the office report dated 22. 8. 1999. The court then ordered on 24. 8. 2000 the notices to be published through publication in two news papers Dainik Jagran and Rastriya Sahara, and they were published accordingly. Yet no counter-affidavit has been filed.

( 3 ) IN view of Explanation II of Chapter VIII, Rule 12 of the Allahabad High Court Rules service of the notice is deemed to be sufficient on the respondent Nos. 5 to 8. No counter-affidavit has been filed by any of the respondents. No counsel has filed vakalatnama on behalf of respondent nos. 5 to 8. Hence, we are treating the allegations in the petition to be correct.

( 4 ) THE petitioner is an old lady of 90 years of age and the land in question is in the jurisdiction of municipal Board of Gorakhpur as stated in paragraph 2 of the writ petition. The aforesaid land was lease land. The lease was originally granted to Babu Shyama Charan by means of lease deed dated 26. 4. 1910 by the Collector, Gorakhpur vide Annexure-1 to the petition. In paragraph 2 of the petition it is mentioned that by a lease deed dated 3. 5. 1951 it was leased out by the grandson of Babu Shyam Charan to one Imtiaz Hussain for 99 years with right of renewal of the lease. A true copy of the lease deed dated 3. 5. 1951 is Annexure-2 to the petition. The said Imtiaz Hussain transferred the lease rights to the petitioner by sale deed dated 27. 9. 1994 vide Annexure-5 to the writ petition and since then the petitioner has been in lawful possession of the aforesaid land.

( 5 ) IN paragraph 5 of the petition it is alleged that respondent No. 8 Amar Mani Trlpathi and his brother Ajit Mani Tripathi respondent No. 6 and one Yudhishthir Dhar Dubey respondent No. 7 who have no right in the aforesaid land and are notorious goondas wanted to grab the land. (It may be mentioned that Shri Amar Mani Tripathi is a Minister in the U. P. Government ). It is further alleged in paragraph 5 of the petition that Amar Mani Tripathi assaulted the petitioners son Parash Nath Gupta and the petitioners servant in the year 1994 and threatened to grab the land. A first information report dated 11. 10. 1994 has been lodged against them in this connection vide Annexure-7 to the writ petition. However, no action whatsoever has been taken on the basis of the said first information report against these persons. Thereupon Amar Mani tripathi and Yudhishthir Dubey devised another method for grabbing the property by getting the land converted into free hold in the names of respondent Nos. 6 and 7. None of them has any right, title or interest in the said land, yet by sheer abuse of power as a Minister, Amar Mani tripathi secured an order dated 11. 1. 1999 declaring the land to be free hold of Ajit Mani Tripathi and Yudhishthir Dhar Dubey. True copies of the declarations are Annexures-8 and 9 to the writ petition.

( 6 ) IN paragraph 7 of the writ petition it is stated that the aforesaid declarations deliberately contain a false recital contrary to the above, with a view to supporting Amar Mani Tripathi. It is further stated therein that a patta dated