PATNA, India, May 15 -- Patna High Court issued the following judgment on April 10:
1. The writ petition has been filed by the petitioner-Akhil Bhartiya Kisan Majdoor Sabha through its Secretary seeking inter alia for a direction to the respondents to take immediate steps to remove encroachment from the land belonging to Bhoodan Yagna Committee and further to prevent illegal encroachment and also issue direction to the respondents to conduct comprehensive survey and demarcate all lands under Bhoodan Yagna Committee in the State of Bihar and take necessary legal steps against the encroachers and further to frame and implement a time bound action plan for redistribution of Bhoodan Land to eligible beneficiaries in accordance with the original purpose of Bhoodan Yagna Movement.
2. Mr. Basant Kumar Chaudhary, learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner has placed reliance on different provisions of Bihar Bhoodan Yagna Act, 1954 (hereafter referred to as the '1954 Act').
3. Section 2 (b) of the 1954 Act defines "Committee" means a Committee established under Section 3 of 1954 Act. Section 2(f) of the Act defines "Revenue Officer" and it states that Collector, Additional Collector, Sub-divisional Officer, Additional Sub-divisional Officer or any officer not below the rank of Sub-Deputy Collector appointed by the State Government to discharge all or any of the function of the Revenue Officer under the Act. Section 13 of the 1954 Act states about vesting of lands in the Bhoodan Yagna Committee, wherein, it is stated that the right, title and interest of the donor in any land donated to Shri Acharya Vinoba Bhave or to the Bhoodan Yagna Committee shall, on confirmation of the Bhoodan Yagna Danpatra in respect of that land, would stand transferred to, and vest in, the Committee for the purpose of the Bhoodan Yagna with effect from the date of the donation and the land vested in the Committee shall not be liable to attachment or sale in execution of any decree or order passed by the Civil Court against the Bhoodan Yagna Committee. Section 14 of the 1954 Act deals with 'grant of land to the landless persons', wherein, it is stated inter alia that the Committee or such other authority or person, as the Committee may specify, either generally or in respect of any local area; in the prescribed manner may grant lands which have vested in the Committee to landless persons or to a village Community, Gram Panchayat, or a Co-operative Society organized by the Committee and the grantee of the land shall acquire the same right, title and interest as the donor had in such land. Section 14A deals with 'protection to the grantee of Bhoodan Land from ejectment'. Section 16 deals with 'settlement of donated land prior to distribution. Section 21 states about 'determination of grant and ejectment of grantee from the land'.
*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://patnahighcourt.gov.in/viewjudgment/MTUjODE4NCMyMDI1IzEjTg==-QMtpDHRrKuY=)
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