The Karnataka High Court has instructed the Forest Department to refund Rs 4.33 lakh, plus 6% interest, to the legal heirs of Mahabaleshwar Bhat, a landowner from Kodagu, who had deposited the amount in 1982. Justice Suraj Govindaraj ruled that the state could not profit from an error made by the citizen in categorizing his land as ‘sagu bane land’ when it was, in fact, classified as alienated ‘sagu bane land.’
Bhat owned 38.5 acres in Biligeri Village, Madikeri taluk, Kodagu district. On February 1, 1983, he received permission to cut 349 trees on the property and subsequently paid Rs 4,33,082 as the value of the trees. However, Bhat later discovered that his land had been categorized as alienated ‘sagu bane land’ since 1897, making the payment unnecessary.
Upon requesting a refund from the authorities, Bhat’s plea was rejected by the Forest Department in 2012, citing the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964. After the department’s appellate authority also dismissed his appeal, Bhat took the matter to the high court. Bhat passed away during the case’s pendency, and his legal heirs continued the petition in 2023.
The court concluded that the Forest Department failed to verify the land’s classification properly, which could have prevented this issue. The court emphasized the responsibility of the authorities to cross-check records and verify details before granting permission to cut trees.
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