3 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Orissa High Court affirms civil courts' jurisdiction in land title disputes
CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court has held that the state government cannot determine ownership in its favour and proceed with eviction through summary proceeding as the proper and competent forum for declaration of right, title, interest and possession is the civil court.
The ruling came while the vacation court set aside the eviction order issued by the tehsildar (Dhamnagar) under Orissa Prevention of Land Encroachment Act, 1972 and the subsequent orders by appellate authorities - sub-collector (Bhadrak) and collector (Bhadrak) endorsing it.
Dinabandhu Behera had filed a petition challenging the eviction order claiming that after the abolition of the estate, the ex-intermediary submitted an Ekpadia in favour of the petitioner's father, in whose name the tenant ledger was opened. His father thereafter paid rent to the government.
Behera came into possession of the suit land after his father's death. Contrary to these facts, the land was erroneously recorded in the name of the state during the Hal settlement, a factual inaccuracy which led to the initiation of encroachment proceedings against him, the petition claimed.
