( 1 ) IN this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution the petitioner prays for quashing the citation dated 30th August, 1977 and for a writ of mandamus directing the respondents 3 and 6 not to realise the forest-dues from the petitioner as arrears of land revenue,

( 2 ) THE facts relevant for our purposes are as follows :-The petitioner is a forest Contractor. At an auction held on August 20, 1968, the petitioner purchased lot No. 8 of the Pithoragarh Forest Division for a sum of Rs. 1,08,000/ -. The sale money was to be paid by the petitioner in two instalments. These instalments were:-

1. 1st instalment Rs. 36,000/- on 1-11-1969. 2. 2nd instalment Rs. 72,000/- on 1-4-1970.

( 3 ) THE petitioner did not pay the instalments as mentioned above. Instead, he paid the amount in small bits. The total amount which had been paid by him by March, 1975 was Rs. 55,334. 85p. After deducting the aforesaid amount from the total sum payable, the amount which remained to be paid was Rs. 52,665. 15 p.

( 4 ) AFTER the auction had been finalised in favour of the petitioner, an agreement was executed between the petitioner and the State of U. P. and as per the agreement and term