NIRMALJIT KAUR,J. - (1.) The present writ petition is filed seeking quashing of the reference application dated 12.04.2012 under Section 82 of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956 as well as impugned notice issued to the petitioner vide Order dated 19.04.2012 by the District Collector, Udaipur in Case No. 02/2012 (Reference) claiming the property in respect of the Khasra No. 371 (2560 min), 372 (2560 min), 373 (2560/1), 375 (2560 min), 376 (2560 min), 377 (2560 min), 378 (2560 min), 380 (2558, 2562 min), 381 (2559) and 382 (2557) to be a reserve forest.
(2.) The State of Mewar merged into Union of Rajasthan. At the time of merger and in pursuance to the Article 12 of the Covenant, a list of private properties of Erstwhile Ruler of Mewar was approved by the Union of India. In the list of private properties of Erstwhile Ruler of Mewar State, the property in question known as Khas Odhi along with Badi Pal was shown within the southern boundary of the City Palace meaning thereby that both the properties, namely, Khad Odhi and Badi Pal are part and parcel of the City Palace, Udaipur and situated within the southern boundary of the Palace. Subsequently, it was also confirmed by the State of Rajasthan vide its Order dated 20.12.1961 and the copy of the same was also sent to the Revenue Department (Forest) for information and necessary action. In pursuance to the order of the Assistant Settlement Officer dated 04.06.1955, the property in dispute was ordered to be entered in favour of the Palace Household. However, the record of rights were not corrected. Hence, in pursuance to a Letter dated 17.10.1966 addressed by the then Maharaja of Udaipur, the State Government issued the Letter dated 27.10.1966 to the then Collector of Udaipur that land of Khasra Nos. 2563, 2564 & 2565 be allowed to be retained by the Forest Department as offered in donation from Maharaja of Udaipur and the other pieces of land illegally occupied be handed over back by the Government to the Household free of any encumbrances. A Letter dated 17.11.1969 was also issued by the then Collector, Udaipur to the D.F.O. Udaipur and Tehsildar, Girwa to handover the possession of the said land. The various authorities in pursuance to the various proceedings initiated under the Ceiling Act, Compensation as well as under Section 91 of the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, held the land in dispute to be private property and Abadi land. After more than 50 years, a notice was issued to the petitioner in pursuance to a reference application under Section 82 of the Act of 1956 qua the same piece of land. Hence, the present writ petition has been filed challenging the said notice and reference made under Section 82 of the Act of 1956.
(3.) Reply has been filed. While opposing the writ petition, Mr. P.R. Singh, learned Additional Advocate General appearing for the respondent - State submitted that the writ petition was premature as the reference application was still pending before the District Collector, Udaipur and even if, the reference is decided against the petitioner, then also, the petitioner is having the alternative statutory remedy available under the Act. Secondly, the preliminary notification under Section 4 declaring the proclamation for reserve forest for this land was published in the Mewar Government Gazette in the year 1945 under the Mewar Forest Act, 1942. Thereafter, after the due proceedings of settling all claims, titles and rights as per law were over, the final decision to declare Forest Block Banki was passed by the F.S.O. on 31.08.1962 and based on this decision, Section 20 notification was notified under the Rajasthan Forest Act, 1953 by the Revenue Secretary, Government of Rajasthan on 13.10.1964, which was published in the Gazette of Rajasthan dated 03.12.1964. Thirdly, as per the Gazette Notification of Forest Block Banki, land area of 05 villages, namely, Balicha, Nai, Sisarama, Goverdhan Vilas and Shahar Udaipur was included and notified as reserve forest which is clear from the Gazette Notification itself, which says "and since all lands acquired if any, for being included in the proposed forest have become vested in the Government under the Compulsory Acquisition Act, the land is hereby declared as reserve forest. A total of 2900.80 acres land was so declared as reserve forest in which Shahar Udaipur's land mass was 83.20 acres. Based on that Gazette Notification, the final forest settlement map was issued by the Forest Settlement Officer showing impugned land falling within the forest block boundary. 83.20 acres of Shahar Udaipur part of the Forest Block Banki is constituted by the current revenue khasras, namely, Khasra Nos. 370, 371, 372, 373, 374, 375, 376, 377, 378, 380, 381, 382, 389, 390, 391 and 1935/390 besides a few other khasras. One of the most significant land record i.e. the current revenue settlement map bears the unambiguous forest boundary demarcation and shows that all these khasras are lying within the Forest Block Banki. The disputed land in the present case bearing Khasra Nos. 371, 372, 373, 380 and 381 are also evidently visible being part of the Forest Block Banki. The disputed land was forest land from the time of Mewar Government as is evident by the land settlement record of Mewar Government of 1932-1939, when disputed land was bearing Khasra Nos. 3506 (74 bighas) and 3507 (12 biswa) and both these khasras were recorded as Bilanam Mahfuz Jungle (Reserve Forest). The Palace Household even after the settlement of the final covenant of properties with none other than the Union of India in 1950, in which they accepted that Banki Ka Jungle and Hill Banki will be State property, still went ahead and wrote to the Revenue Settlement Officer in 1953 that Khas Odhi and Banki Ka Jungle is their property in complete violation and disrespect to the covenant signed by themselves. Even after knowing well that the Khas Odhi and the surrounding land of Shahar Udaipur are falling within the forest land proclamation of 1945, instead of forwarding the claim to the F.S.O., claimed the complete Banki Ka Jungle to be theirs before the Settlement Officer Revenue who had no jurisdiction whatsoever with respect to the Section 4 notified land. Lastly, some of the gazette notified land was erroneously mutated in the name of the Palace Household even while the forest settlement was going on and which should have been rectified as soon as the final notification was declared but it could not be done. Subsequently, in the year 1971, some khasras which were recorded in the name of the Palace Household were recorded as Bilanam in the revenue record. This Bilanam land again instead of being mutated in the name of forest department, was transferred to the U.I.T. in the year 1989. The Forest Department while doing the exercise to update the record of Forest Block Banki came to know that the land in question is mutated in the name of Hotel Lake Palace and the U.I.T., whereas, the true fact is that the land in question is a forest land for which final notification had already been issued way back in the year 1964 and the demarcation line depicting the forest boundary exists in the current revenue map also. The land in question constitutes the bank of Lake Pichola and presently has dense forest cover, and is extraordinarily significant for the flora and fauna of the area, as also is important from the environment point of view. Further, this land of utmost public interest needs to be taken into custody by the Forest Department immediately before both the parties in the present case i.e. the U.I.T. or the Lake Palace Hotels and Motels could use it for some non-forestry uses of commercial nature and cause an irretrievable loss to the environment. In this manner, the respondent - State tried to justify issuance of the notice under Section 82 ibid to the petitioner.;