12.09.2025

Item No. 50

Crt.No.2

b.r. CIRCUIT BENCH OF CALCUTTA HIGH COURT

AT JALPAIGURI

APPELLATE SIDE

WPA 1899 of 2025

Pradeep Agarwal @ Pradip Agarwal

-vs-

The Principal Secretary & Ors.

Mr. Sandip Guha Roy

Mr. Ananda Paul

….. for the petitioner. Mr. Subir Kumar Saha

Mr. Kumar Shantanu (VC)

…. For the State.

Ms. Supriya Singh (VC)

Mr. Mayank Bhandari … for the Resp. no.3

Mr. Sandip Guha Roy, learned advocate,

appears for the petitioner.

Mr. Subir Kumar Saha, learned advocate

appears for the State-respondents.

Ms. Supriya Singh, learned advocate through

virtual mode appears for the respondent no.3.

The petitioner alleges encroachment on a

portion of Asian Highway-48 land (for short, the said Highway land), at the behest of the alleged encroachers who are still in wrongful occupation of

the portion of the Highway land as alleged.

Ms. Supriya Singh, learned advocate appearing for the said Highway Authority submits that Sections 26 and 27 of the Control of National Highways (Land and Traffic) Act, 2002(for short the said 2002 Act) deal with removal of unauthorized occupation. Respondent no.3 is the appropriate and jurisdictional authority to carry out the enter exercise in terms of Sections 26 and 27 of the said

2002 Act.

In view of the above, the following directions are passed:-

(i) The respondent no.3 shall serve notice once again upon the alleged encroachers who are allegedly occupying the portion of the said Highway land in accordance with law and by following the due process of law as provided under the said Act of 2002 and the relevant Rules, if any, thereunder and/or any other connected Rules if prescribed under the statute. The notice shall also be pasted on the conspicuous spaces at the alleged encroached portion. The said notice shall also mention the time and place for hearing to be granted to such alleged encroachers and the petitioner and the hearing shall be conducted by the respondent no.3. Identical notice shall also be published once in local widely circulated newspaper in vernacular and once in English having wide circulation;

(ii) On the date and time to be fixed in the said notice, the respondent no.3 shall conduct the hearing. In the event, any of the interested parties or alleged encroachers are not represented, the hearing shall continue and the respondent no.3 then shall pass its reasoned order on the allegation of alleged encroachment.

(iii) To come to a specific finding, the respondent no.3 upon prior notice shall also conduct a physical enquiry of the alleged encroachment on the portion of Highway land and for this purpose the local police authority, if approached, shall provide all necessary assistance to the respondent no.3.

(iv) The reasoned order then shall be served upon the petitioner and the alleged encroachers/interested parties who shall participate in the hearing and the parties shall collect it at their own responsibility from the office of the respondent no.3;

(v) This entire exercise shall be carried out positively within a period of six weeks from the date of communication of this order;

(vi) If the reasoned order confirms encroachment then the respondent no.3 and/or other jurisdictional authority of the Highway concerned shall take all necessary and consequential steps strictly following the procedure laid down under Sections 26 and 27 of the said 2002 Act read with the relevant rules, if any, including the Highway Administration Rules, 2004, if applicable;

(vii) The respondent no.3 then shall take the necessary steps and shall remove the encroachment positively following the due process of law but within one month from the date of the said reasoned order to be passed;

(viii) At the time of removal of encroachment, if any, the respondent no.3 shall be entitled to seek police assistance from the local police authority and/or the District Police and in such event, the relevant police authority/authorities shall provide all necessary assistance for removal of encroachment expeditiously;

(ix) The petitioner shall also serve