Jaipur: Taking a stern view of repeated non-compliance with its directions, the Rajasthan High Court has ordered the immediate suspension of Nadauti tehsildar Deen Dayal Sharma and patwari Bharat Singh Gurjar of Karauli district for failing to remove recurring encroachments despite earlier judicial orders. The court also directed the Revenue Secretary to initiate departmental proceedings against both officers, who will remain under suspension until the inquiry is completed.The directions were issued by a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Maneesh Sharma on Thursday (the copy of the order was uploaded on Saturday) while hearing a writ petition filed by Roopraj Prajapat concerning repeated encroachments over govt land recorded as a Gair Mumkin Nala (natural drainage channel) in Nadauti tehsil of Karauli district. The petitioner alleged that despite repeated eviction drives by the authorities, encroachers repeatedly reoccupied the land by raising permanent structures and boundary walls, obstructing the natural drain.The bench recalled that on April 27, it directed the authorities to remove the encroachments by April 30, observing that despite repeated eviction drives, the same encroachers returned to illegally occupy the land. It warned that further directions would follow if the encroachments were not removed within the stipulated time. Subsequently, on April 30, the court sought explanations from the tehsildar and patwari for non-compliance and listed the matter for May 20. However, the case could not be taken up on that date due to administrative reasons in the registry.When the matter came up again on July 2, both officers appeared in person before the court and admitted that encroachments still existed. They sought another seven days to remove them.Refusing to grant further time, the bench expressed shock at their response, observing that they showed “no regard” for the court’s earlier orders and displayed complete disregard for their official responsibilities. The court remarked that the officers failed to perform their statutory duties despite being fully aware that the encroachments were repeatedly removed and re-established.While refraining from initiating contempt proceedings at this stage, the High Court directed the Revenue Secretary to immediately initiate departmental proceedings against both officials and ordered that they remain under suspension until the disciplinary inquiry is concluded.The bench further directed Additional Advocate General G S Gill to issue instructions to the concerned SHO and other revenue authorities to ensure immediate removal of the encroachments and submit a compliance report before the next hearing. The matter was listed for further hearing on July 8, 2026.
