Hijli Co-Operative Development Society Ltd. Vs State of West Bengal and Ors. — Calcutta HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

Hijli Co-Operative Development Society Ltd. Vs State of West Bengal and Ors. — Calcutta HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Liberty granted to the writ petitioner to prefer an appropriate challenge, subject to limitation and if otherwise entitled in law, against Order No.3 dated February 8, 2024 passed by the District Land and Land Reforms Officer, Paschim Medinipur in L.R.P. No.309 of 2023; WPLRT 202 of 2025 disposed of without interfering with the impugned Tribunal order dated September 8, 2025; no order as to costs.

Issue for consideration

Whether the writ petitioner's original application (O.A. No.1201 of 2024 (LRTT)) before the West Bengal Land Reforms and Tenancy Tribunal was maintainable, given that a challenge lay against the appellate authority's order dated February 8, 2024 passed under Section 54 of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955 in L.R.P. No.309 of 2023.

Court's answer

This Court holds that the learned Tribunal was justified in holding that the original application of the writ petitioner, in its present form, was not maintainable.

Ratio / Principle

Nothing in the impugned order precludes the writ petitioner from preferring an appropriate challenge, subject to limitation and if otherwise entitled in law, against Order No.3 dated February 8, 2024 passed by the District Land and Land Reforms Officer, Paschim Medinipur (appellate authority under Section 54 of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955) in L.R.P. No.309 of 2023.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Writ Petition (LRTT) disposed of. The writ petitioner had challenged, before the West Bengal Land Reforms and Tenancy Tribunal, the alleged inaction of the respondent authorities instead of challenging the order dated February 8, 2024 passed in L.R.P. No.309 of 2023 by the District Land and Land Reforms Officer, Paschim Medinipur as appellate authority under Section 54 of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955. The Tribunal, by order dated September 8, 2025 in O.A. No.1201 of 2024 (LRTT), dismissed the application on contest as not maintainable. The Court upheld the Tribunal's view on maintainability but clarified that nothing in the impugned order precludes the writ petitioner from preferring an appropriate challenge against the appellate authority's order, subject to limitation and entitlement in law. Disposed of without interfering with the impugned order; no costs.

14.01.2026

Item no.DL 25 Court No. 16 Asraf, A.R.(Ct.)

In the High Court at Calcutta

Constitutional Writ Jurisdiction Appellate Side

Case No. WPLRT 202 of 2025

In the matter of : HIJLI CO-OPERATIVE DEVELOPMENT SOCIETY LTD.

…. Petitioner

VS.

THE STATE OF WEST BENGAL & ORS.

….Respondents

For the Petitioner : Mr. Ashim Roy Mr. Asif Hussain Mr. Ovik Sengupta Mr. Vijay Verma Mr. Mithun Das ….Advocates For the State : Mr. Chandi Charan De, Addl. Govt. Pleader Ms. Chandana Ghosh ….Advocates For the Private Respondent no.4 : Mr. Rajyashree Chowdhury Mukherjee Mr. Sudipta Bera

….Advocates

1. Affidavit of service filed today be taken on record.

2. Learned counsel for the writ petitioner submits that despite an order being passed by the appellate authority in an appeal under Section 54 of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955, i.e., order dated February 8, 2024 passed in L.R.P. No.309 of 2023, due to communication gap and insufficient legal advice, a challenge was filed before the Tribunal, instead of against the said

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order of the appellate authority, against the alleged inaction of the respondent authorities.

3. The learned Tribunal, by the impugned order, dismissed the original application on contest in view of the same being not maintainable, since there is a provision for challenge against the order under Section 54 of the 1955 Act passed by the District Land and Land Reforms Officer, Paschim Medinipur on February 8, 2024 in the capacity of appellate authority under the said provision.

4. Learned counsel for the writ petitioner fairly submits that liberty may be given to the writ petitioner to prefer an appropriate challenge against the said order of the appellate authority.

5. Upon hearing learned counsels for the parties, this Court is of the opinion that the learned Tribunal was justified in holding that the original application of the writ petitioner, in its present form, was not maintainable. However, nothing in the impugned order precludes the writ petitioner from preferring an appropriate challenge, subject to limitation and if otherwise entitled in law, against Order No.3 dated February 8, 2024 passed by the District Land and Land Reforms Officer, Paschim Medinipur (appellate authority under

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Section 54 of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955) in L.R.P. No.309 of 2023.

6. With the above liberty, WPLRT 202 of 2025 is disposed of without interfering with the impugned order dated September 8, 2025 passed by the Fourth Bench, West Bengal Land Reforms and Tenancy Tribunal in O. A. no.1201 of 2024 (LRTT).

7. There shall be no order as to costs.

8. Parties shall act on the basis of server copy of this order, duly downloaded from the official website of this Court.

9. Urgent Photostat certified copies of this order, if applied for, be supplied to the parties expeditiously upon compliance of all requisite formalities.

( Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya, J. )

(Supratim Bhattacharya, J.)