IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE Present:

The Hon’ble Justice Debangsu Basak And The Hon’ble Justice Md. Shabbar Rashidi FMA 145 of 2025 With IA No.: CAN 1 of 2024 Md. Shaddam Hossain & Anr.

Vs.

The State of West Bengal & Ors.

with CPAN 346 of 2025 Angur Ali Vs.

Md. Shaddam Hossain & Anr.

with WPA 16584 of 2023 Md. Shaddam Hossain & Anr.

Vs.

The State of West Bengal & Ors.

with WPA 17405 of 2024 Angur Ali Vs.

State of West Bengal & Ors.

For the Appellants : Mr. Sudip Deb, Ld. Sr. Advocate Mr. Debasish Saha, Advocate Mr. Avirup Roy Sanyal, Advocate Ms. Ipsita Ghosh, Advocate For the State : Mr. Swapan Banerjee, Ld. AGP Mr. Diptendu Narayan Banerjee, Advocate For the petitioner in CPAN 364 of 2025 : Mr. Rwitendra Banerjee, Advocate and respondent no.10 in FMA 145 of 2025 Mr. Shibasis Chatterjee, Advocate Mr. Sandip Kundu, Advocate For the State in WPA 16584 of 2023: Mr. Lalit Mohan Mahata, Ld. AGP Mr. Rudranil De, Advocate Heard & Judgment on : April 22, 2025 DEBANGSU BASAK, J.:-

1. Appeal and a contempt petition filed in the appeal alleging violation of the order passed in the appeal are taken up for analogous hearing.

2. It is pointed out on behalf of the appearing parties that, there is an order passed by the appeal court directing the two writ petitions to be heard and disposed of by the appeal court.

3. We are not minded to dispose of the two writ petitions in the appeal, given the facts and circumstances of the present case.

4. We are limiting ourselves to the appeal directed against the order dated December 3, 2024 passed in the two pending writ petitions as also the contempt petition being CPAN 346 of 2025 which alleges violation of the order dated December 13, 2024 passed by us.

5. Appellants before us are the writ petitioners of WPA 16584 of 2023.

6. Appellants challenged two orders in the writ petitions and prayed for grant of sanction of a plan for construction.

7. Appellants challenged the order dated May 2, 2023 passed by the Panchayat recording a portion of the construction made by the appellants to be unauthorized and requiring demolition thereof. Appellants also assailed the order dated May 24, 2023 passed by the Sub-Divisional Officer directing demolition of the unauthorized construction noted by the Panchayat.

8. The private respondent before us filed a writ petition being WPA 17405 of 2024 seeking implementation of the order of demolition passed by the Sub-Divisional Officer dated May 24, 2023.

9. Both the writ petitions were taken up for consideration analogously by the learned Single Judge. Learned Single Judge by the order impugned dated December 3, 2024 noted that, there subsists an order of demolition dated May 2, 2023. Thereafter, the Sub-Divisional Officer passed the order dated May 24, 2023. Noting that, the order of Sub- Divisional Officer dated May 24, 2023 was not implemented for more than a year an explanation was called for by the learned Single Judge by the impugned order.

10. In the appeal, the appellants volunteered self-demolition which was recorded by the order dated December 13, 2024. However, appellants did not undertake the self-demolition as promised.

11. Private respondent before us filed a contempt petition being CPAN 346 of 2025 alleging violation of the undertaking dated December 13, 2024. During the pendency of the appeal and the contempt petition, the authorities purported to grant sanction of the construction found to be unauthorized earlier on February 10, 2025.

12. Learned Senior Advocate appearing for the appellants draws the attention of the Court to the order of the Panchayat dated May 2, 2023, the order of the Sub-Divisional Officer dated May 24, 2023 as also the application for sanction of construction dated June 27, 2023.

13. Learned Senior Advocate appearing for the appellants relies upon Section 23 of the West Bengal Panchayat Act, 1973 and 2024 INSC 866 (In Re: Direction in the matter of demolition of Structures) for the proposition that, post-facto sa