JUDGMENT

The petitioner has approached this Court seeking a direction to the respondents to return/release the Excavators/Hitachis seized by the 3^rd respondent as per Ext.P6 to petitioners 2 and 3, forthwith, without any further delay.

2. The 1^st petitioner is the Mother Superior of Little Flower Convent, Chelakkara, Thrissur. The Convent is running an aided Higher Secondary School. Petitioners 2 and 3 are the owners of the Excavators/Hitachi. The contention of the petitioners is that the Advisory Committee of the National Service Scheme [NSS] of the School, in the meeting conducted on 21.12.2021, decided that through ‘Haritha’ project of the Government to make awareness and affinity towards agriculture among the students, to start agricultural operations in the paddy land owned by the Convent. Consequently, the Executive Committee of the PTA decided to start vegetable cultivation in the said land by Students Police Cadets [SPC] and NSS as evident from Ext.P2. Therefore, pursuant to the said decision, Ext.P3 request was made before the 3^rd respondent-Village Officer for permission to use Hitachi for the cultivation activities and after getting permissions from respondents 2 and 3,