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Appellants: Senior Divisional Engineer, Eastern Railway, v. Respondent: The State of Bihar
NLS/ENVIS/18.11.2011/Forests/THE HIGH COURT OF PATNA
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PATNA
Appellants: Senior Divisional Engineer, Eastern Railway, v. Respondent: The State of Bihar
Criminal Writ No. 496 of 2001
Decided On: 18.11.2011
Hon'ble Judges: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Aditya Kumar Trivedi
JUDGMENT
Petitioner by virtue of his post as well as name, has filed instant writ with a prayer for quashing of Forest Case No.172 of 2001 pending in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Rohtas at Sasaram under Section 33 read with Section 41,42 of the Indian Forest Act.
Forest Range Officer filed written report on 23.04.2001 before the learned CJM disclosing therein that on the same day while he was patrolling Amri reserve forest, seized tractor bearing Registration No.BR 24B 0663 laden with stone. The driver, contractor and laborers have made their safe escape. It has further been disclosed that Railway Department is illegally making stone quarry through the contractor. At an earlier occasion too on 23.4.2001 a tractor was seized for which Complaint Petition No.172/2001 was filed. The Petitioner argued that he has been made an accused by his name as well as designation although admittedly there happens to be total absence of petitioner at the spot in any capacity. It was argued by the petitioners by a notification dated 10th October, 1896 published in extraordinary gazette dated 14th October, 1896 Railway had acquired certain area of lands lying at different village wherein the village Amri also lies. The aforesaid acquisition was for laying the railway lines as well as for quarry to have the stones particles to make the railway line effective for transportation and therefore was in public interest. Khatiyan was accordingly prepared in name of railway. the Bihar Government have notified the forest standing over lands of different villages including Amri and classified it as reserve forest. However, by such action there has not been deletion of Annexure-2 or other Annexure, so far status of railway was concerned, nay the aforesaid notification pondered upon the land already acquired by the railway. So submitted that launching of prosecution will be nothing but an abuse of process of the court.
The court held that petitioner is one of the senior most officer of the railway and he has been made an accused by virtue of his post as well as by name even though he was neither present at the spot, nor he indulged in his personal capacity nay he was indulged in day-to-day affair. At the other hand the complaint itself discloses that quarry was running by the railway, a wing of Central Government. From Annexure-2 it is evident that the land was already acquired for laying down the railway line and the same happens to be in its continuance since 1898. Khatiyan stood in its name. Annexure-5, a notification of the Bihar Government Identifying and Recognizing certain areas of different villages including the village in question as reserved forest even does not encroach over the same. (much less the exact P.O. is also not pointed out in complaint) In the aforesaid background, no prosecution can be allowed to proceed for violation of any of the provision of Indian Forest Act (Bihar Amendment). At this juncture it would be pertinent to incorporate the salient feature for declaring the reserve forest which is to be identified as per section 3 of the Indian Forest Act and has to be notified in accordance with Section 4 of the Act. Sub-section (b) prescribes the mode of its demarcation in following manner. (b) specifying as nearly as possible the situation and limits of such land and the aforesaid notification is to be circulated and after having hearing over the objections if any and making such inquiry finally it has to be notified in accordance with Section 20 of the Act. Section 23 prescribes a forbidding proviso by which any right of an individual is derecognized. That means to say the preliminary notification as per Section 4 and final notification as per Section 20 of the Act must locate and identify the identity of the lands which has been covered and notified as a reserve forest. There is no description with regard to total area of Amri village and further how much area of total area has been notified as reserved forest although Annexure-5 speaks 57.20 Acres thereof. Annexure-2, the land acquired by the railway covers an area of 7.16 Acre which was further expanded by notification no. 22 December, 1938 (Annexure-4) 42 Bigha 15 Kattha 14 Chitta, part survey Plot No.615 which does not lie within as is evident from Annexure-5. Therefore, the present prosecution appears to be misconceived and is accordingly quashed.