Guwahati: Serious concerns have been raised by many over Assam Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan’s ‘undue interference’ in a dispute over a plot of land which belongs to the management of Guwahati-based Girijananda Chowdhury University and a few other patta holders.
Assam Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan allegedly issued a written order to the Circle Officer of Azara Revenue Circle to take steps for the demarcation of the boundary of a plot of land at Azara in Guwahati.
The Circle Officer of the Azara Revenue Circle in a notice asked the management of Girijananda Chowdhury University and other patta holders to attend during the boundary demarcation on June 21.
In the notice, the Circle Officer clearly mentioned that he has issued the notice as per the written direction of the Assam Revenue and Disaster Management minister.
“As per the written direction of the Assam Revenue and Disaster Management minister, the boundary demarcation of the land (Lease No. 56) at Azara under Ramsarani Mouza will be made on June 21, 2023, at 11.00 am. Therefore, you are kindly requested to attend on the scheduled date. Otherwise, appropriate action will be taken,” the notice read.
The circle officer, however, has not furnished the minister’s written order with the notice sent to the management of Girijananda Chowdhury University.
The notice has been sent without mentioning the issue date and it has been sent in such haste that the varsity management received it just 18 hours before the scheduled date for boundary demarcation.
The minister’s move to interfere in the land dispute raised many eyebrows. Such an act of Jogen Mohan has undermines the status of a minister.
“No responsible minister issue such an arbitrary order to resolve a dispute over a plot of private land. If any order has to be issued, it has to come from a respective official of the revenue department, not from the minister,” the source said.
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The minister’s unwarranted interest in the dispute is a matter of serious concern, the source said.
Earlier, hearing a petition filed by Harun Ali, one of the patta holders of the land, the Gauhati High Court directed the Circle Officer of the Azara Revenue Circle to verify whether Nani Choudhury has any subsisting interest over the land in question and hear the petitioner.
The circle officer allegedly did not hear petitioner Harun Ali because of constant pressure from Minister Jogen Mohan.
Interestingly, the boundary demarcation of the said plot of land was made at least four times earlier by the authorities.
The dispute over the plot of land has arisen after one Nani Choudhury, a resident of Chandmari in Guwahati claimed ownership of a portion of the said land, without having any valid land document.