STATE OF H.P. AND ANR. Vs. WARIAM SINGH AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present Respondent Sh. Waryam Singh filed a suit for recovery of Rs. 48,500/ - as compensation for damages caused to him by the Defendants. The other prayer submitted in the plaint was for the grant of permanent injunction restraining the Defendants from claiming and realising Rs. 54,639.25p as arrears of land revenue.

(2.) As per case of the Plaintiff, it has been pleaded by him that he was a Contractor and was engaged in the manufacture of Katha and he purchased Khair and other trees by auction in Lot No. 45/78 -79, UP/22 Chhatroli, C -8, Nurpur Range for manufacturing of Katha and other trees for firewood at the cost of Rs. 1,50,100/ - and also purchased Khair trees from the owners of village Dhasoli, Takwal, Mauza Fatehpur, Village Makher Mehar, Lhoh, Mauza Bagroli and village Rajgir, Tehsil Nurpur. Thereafter the Plaintiff obtained permit to set up Bhathies one Pehla and one Tehla to manufacture Katha from Khair trees purchased from individual land owners from their proprietary holdings and also for manufacturing of Katha from the khair trees obtained from the auctioned forest referred to earlier.

(3.) Plaintiff's further case has been that he engaged labourers and other persons to construct Bhathies and to manufacture Katha and for cutting of trees and for other work connected with felling of trees, transporting them to the Bhathies and doing other necessary work for the manufacturing of Katha. According to him, he spent nearly Rs. 39,000/ - for this purpose. It was also pleaded that the Defendants with the help of their subordinates in the forest department interfered and obstructed the manufacturing work of katha from privately owned trees without any right or justification and consequently, the Plaintiff alongwith other contractors had to file a writ petition challenging the action of the forest officials in interfering with manufacture of Katha from the trees owned by the proprietors individually owned holdings in which the Himachal Pradesh Government and Forest Department took up the position that they had nothing to do with the trees owned by the proprietors and that they were not in any manner interfering with the rights of the contractors with respect to the trees purchased from the proprietors. Consequently, as per the case of the Plaintiff, in view of the reply of the government, the writ petition became infructuous and was withdrawn on 26.2.1979.