The court emphasized the need for timely resolution of land claims under the Bihar Land Ceiling Act, 1961.

CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJIV ROY ORAL ORDER

2 02-12-2025 Heard the parties.

2. The present petition has been preferred for the grant of following relief(s):

“for issuance of a Writ in the nature of Certiorari, or in any other appropriate Writ, Order or direction, to quash the order dated 6.03.2018 (Annexure-1), passed in Misc. Ceiling Case No.341/1992, dismissing the claims of the Petitioner over the lands in question, when the matters were remanded back to the Collector by the Hon'ble Member Board of Revenue by His order dated 24.03..1992 (Annexure-2), for fresh hearing by the Collector of the District,under the Bihar Land Reform (Fixation of Ceiling Area and Acquisition of Surplus Land) Act 1961, in short known as Bihar Land Ceiling Act. 1961, who has kept the matter pending for last 26 years (from 1992 to 2018) & without affording the opportunity for resolving the bonafide dispute between the parties, for ascertaining the claims of the petitioner in the Land Ceiling Case No.41/82-83 of Late Nageshwar Pathak S/o Late Bishawanath Pathak, Mohalla & P.O. - Madhubani P.S.- K. Hat, District Purnea as the Land in question had already sold by the Late Nageshwar Pathak in favour of the Petitioners by registered sale-deeds, as such the land in question of the Petitioner has wrongly been declared as surplus lands of Nageshwar Pathak in a Ceiling Case No.41/82-83 by Gazette Notification No.11 dated 05.06.1991 of the Purnea Zilla Gazette, wherein, accordingly.”

3. Admit.

4. State receives notice on behalf of the respondent no.1 to 4.

5. Issue notice to the respondent no. 5 to 14 through both processes i.e. ordinary as well as registered cover with A/D for which requisites etc. must be filed within a period of four weeks failing which the application shall stand rejected without further reference to the Bench.

6. In case, the order passed is not complied and the matter accordingly stands dismissed, subsequently, the same be posted under the heading ‘To be Mentioned’.

7. Pleadings to be exchanged in next six months.

8. Rule is made returnable within a period of one year.

(Rajiv Roy, J)