RAPHY JOHN Vs. LAND REVENUE COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The captioned writ petitions and intra court appeals are materially connected in regard to the grant of, or application submitted for quarrying lease, by or before the State Government; the stop memos issued thereunder by the revenue authorities; the rejection of applications for quarrying etc., in the lands specially assigned for cultivation, or house sites or beneficial enjoyment of adjoining lands or for other specific and special purposes, under the Kerala Government Land Assignment Act, 1960 (hereinafter referred to, as 'the Act, 1960'), and the rules framed thereunder; such as the Kerala Land Assignment Rules, 1964 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Rules, 1964'), the Special Rules for Assignment of Government Lands for Rubber Cultivation, 1960, and the Arable Forest Land Assignment Rules, 1970.

(2.) Most of the writ petitions before us, are consequent to the reference orders passed by learned single Judges dtd. 12/7/2019 & 15/2/2022, the reason for which would be specified later. Some are public interest litigation against the quarrying operations conducted in the assigned lands.

(3.) In all the cases filed by the quarry operators, they are the purchasers of lands from primary assignees, which is undisputed. In fact, the Rules of Assignment under the Rules specified above, relating to reservation of rights of the Government, and to mine and quarries, subjacent to the assigned lands, are materially one and the same. In the rules, State Government have reserved its share to mines and quarries, subjacent to the land in its favour; which thus means, the assignment was made by the Government to primary assignees, to use the topsoil of the assigned land for cultivation or house construction or for beneficial enjoyment of adjoining lands. The rules in regard to the same; the clauses contained in Appendix I and II of Rule 9 of the Rules, 1964; and the other Rules specified above, will be discussed later.