Dhanbad (Jharkhand) v. The State of Jharkhand, through Anti
Case Details
W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 1. Tanuja Singh @ Smt. Tanuja Singh aged about 57 years, wife of Sri Narayan Singh 2. Abhishek Kumar, aged about 37 years, son of Sri Narayan Singh Both resident of Village- Kusum Vihar, P.O. – B.C.C.L. Township, P.S.- Seraidhela, Dist.- Dhanbad (Jharkhand) .... Petitioners Versus The State of Jharkhand, through Anti-Corruption Bureau …. Respondent With W.P. (Cr.) No. 82 of 2023 Ravindra Nath Singh, aged about 68 years, son of late Girija Nandan Singh, resident of Village- Kusum Vihar, P.O. – B.C.C.L. Township, P.S.- Seraidhela, Dist.- Dhanbad (Jharkhand) .... Petitioner Versus The State of Jharkhand, through Anti-Corruption Bureau …. Respondent P R E S E N T
Legal Reasoning
HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE ANIL KUMAR CHOUDHARY ….. For the Petitioner For the State : Mr. A.K. Kashyap, Sr. Advocate : Mr. Ashutosh Anand, AAG-III : Mr. Manish Kumar, Sr. SC-II : Mr. Asghar, AC to Sr. SC-II ….. By the Court:- W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 2 1. 2. Heard the parties. Both these writ petitions have been filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India with a prayer to issue writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ/ order/ direction for quashing the FIR including the entire prosecution in connection with ACB Dhanbad P.S. Case No. 9 of 2022 qua the petitioners. 3. The brief facts of the case is that the petitioners of both the writ petitions are purchasers of the land which was acquired under the emergency provision by Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad and the petitioners have been paid 80% of the market value of the property towards compensation. It is also alleged that co-accused- Uday Kant Pathak, the then Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad instructed the Sub-Registrar not to allow registration of the acquired land of Mouza- Dhaiya but co-accused- Sushma Prasad who purchased the land even after that date was paid compensation. 4. It is submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that the petitioner no.1 of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 purchased the concerned land before the letter dated 18.09.2013 of the Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad because the petitioner no.1 purchased the said land vide sale deed no. 6270 dated 11.09.2012 by Khukhi Mahtain and Jyooti Gope. It is next submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that as averred in paragraph no. 18 of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 and which averment of this writ petition has remained uncontroverted in the counter affidavit filed by the State. It is then submitted that W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 3 the petitioner no.2 of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023, was the owner of the concerned land in respect of which compensation has been paid to him on 05.10.2012 which again was before the said letter dated 18.09.2013 of the concerned Land Acquisition Officer and the petitioner of W.P. (Cr.) No. 82 of 2023 purchased the land vide sale deed no. 7534 dated 26.10.2012 which is also before the said letter dated 18.09.2013 of the concerned Land Acquisition Officer. It is next submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that the petitioner no.1 and 2 of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 had no knowledge regarding the Notification/Adhigoshna which came to their knowledge from the daily newspaper dated 13.09.2013 and the land after purchase was mutated in the name of all the three petitioners of the said two writ petitions. It is then submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that the petitioner no.1 of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 received two notices from the District Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad in connection with the Land Acquisition File No. 01 of 2012-13 and hence she was asked to appear before the Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad in connection with her claim, demand of compensation and under Section 8 of Land Acquisition Act regarding her objection if any and in response to the same, the petitioner no.1 submits her claim in accordance with law. It is then submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that the petitioner no.2 of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 also received a notice and submitted his claim as per law. It is also submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 4 petitioners that the petitioners have not been given full and final payment in relation to the land which has been acquired under Section 17 (1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 by the Government for expansion of the Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad. It is further submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that the both the petitioners of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 filed W.P. (C) No. 4289 of 2020 for making payment of due compensation with interest to the petitioners for
Decision
acquisition of their respective lands which was disposed of with a liberty to the petitioners to file a fresh application/representation before the Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad and consequent upon the order of the coordinate Bench of this Court in W.P. (C) No. 4289 of 2020, the petitioners filed their representation before the Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad, but the claim of the petitioners was turned down. It is then submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that the petitioners of W.P. (Cr.) No. 71 of 2023 also filed another writ application being W.P. (C) No. 3578 of 2021 challenging the order dated 16.08.2021 passed in Misc. Case No. 02 of 2021. It is also submitted by the learned Senior Advocate appearing for the petitioners that there is no allegation against any of the petitioners to make out any case against them. Hence, it is submitted that the FIR including the entire prosecution in connection with ACB Dhanbad P.S. Case No. 9 of 2022 qua the petitioners be quashed and set aside. W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 5 5. Learned AAG-III on the other hand opposes the prayer to quash the FIR including the entire criminal prosecution in connection with ACB Dhanbad P.S. Case No. 9 of 2022 qua the petitioners and submits that on 16.08.2012 the format for notification for acquisition of land was forwarded by the then Land Acquisition Officer, Dhanbad to the Deputy Commissioner, Dhanbad for approval under the general clause and after getting approval, the notification for acquisition was signed but thereafter, the co- accused- Uday Kant Pathak in terms of letter dated 11.04.2013 again forwarded the requisition for acquisition of lands under the emergency clause and the notification was sent for approval by the State Government under emergency clause on 15.04.2013 and the State Government approved the emergency acquisition of land. It is next submitted by learned AAG-III that there is no mention of cancellation of earlier process wherein the lands were sought to be acquired by adhering to the general clause in respect of which notification no. 592 dated 22.08.2012 was signed and on 07.04.2014, one installment payment was made to the petitioners. It is then submitted by learned AAG-III that the payment of the awarded amount was made without there being mutation in favour of the petitioners. It is further submitted by learned AAG- III that W.P. (C) No. 3578 of 2021 has since been dismissed by a coordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated 23.08.2023. Hence, it is submitted that there is ample material in the record to proceed against the petitioners. It is therefore, submitted that both the writ petitions being without any merit be dismissed. W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 6 6. Having heard the submissions made at the Bar and after going through the materials available in the record, the undisputed fact remains that the petitioners were the owners of the land at the time of acquisition of the land for expansion of Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad by “exercise of special powers of urgency to acquire land in certain cases” as has been envisaged under Section 40 of The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. The undisputed facts also remains that such decision to acquire land in urgency can only happen whenever the State Government so directs and the collector can acquire such land. 7. Now coming to the facts of the case, only suspicion is raised against the petitioners because though there was notification vide notification no. 592 dated 22.08.2012 for acquisition of the land in normal process; subsequently, a decision was taken by the Government for acquisition of the land by invoking special powers in case of urgency to acquire such land. Undisputedly, the petitioners have no role to play in the decision taken by the Government for invoking special power for acquisition of the land in case of urgency. 8. True it is that the two land acquisition officers who initiated such proposal have been made co-accused but the fact remains undisputed that they themselves could not have taken the decision for acquisition of the land by invoking special powers in case of urgency to acquire such land. The other officers of the State Government, who took such decision for acquisition of the W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 7 land by invoking special powers in case of urgency to acquire such land; have not been made co-accused as yet. In case of acquisition of the land concern by exercise of special power in case of urgency if found to be in order, obviously, the petitioners are not liable for commission of any offence. 9. True it is that, in the FIR it has been mentioned that the petitioners in criminal conspiracy with the co-accused- public servant have suppressed the fact in the document but after carefully going through the materials in the record, this Court finds that there is absolutely no allegation against the petitioners as to which fact were suppressed by them in the document concerned. The materials in the record suggest that petitioners are genuine purchasers of the land from the rightful owner and after purchase; the same have been mutated in their names. They are paying land revenue to the State Government at the time of acquisition of land invoking the special powers in case of urgency for acquisition of such land. Hence, this Court is of the considered view that there is absolutely no material against the petitioners to array them as accused persons in the case at least at this stage. Hence, continuation of the criminal proceeding and forcing the petitioners to face the rigmarole of a criminal investigation will amount to abuse of process of law and hence, this is a fit case where the FIR including the entire prosecution in connection with ACB Dhanbad P.S. Case No. 9 of 2022 qua the petitioners be quashed and set aside. W.P. (Cr.) No.71 of 2023 with W.P. (Cr.) No.82 of 2023 8 10. It is made clear that this order will not be a bar to array the petitioners as accused person at a later stage in the case as accused if during further investigation of the case any incriminating material is found by the investigating agency against them. Accordingly, the FIR including the entire prosecution in connection with ACB Dhanbad P.S. Case No. 9 of 2022 qua the petitioners is quashed and set aside. In the result, both the writ petitions are allowed in the above terms. Order accordingly. The interim order granted earlier stands vacated. 11. 12. 13. 14. High Court of Jharkhand, Ranchi Dated the 21st December, 2023 AFR/Sonu-Gunjan/- (Anil Kumar Choudhary, J.)