Nagpur – In a significant judgment, the High Court has refused to entertain a petition challenging a forest notification issued nearly 70 years ago. The petition was filed by Shyamrao Tarale, who claimed ownership of land notified as reserved forest under Section 29 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927.
The original notification was issued on August 29, 1955, by the Forest Department, declaring certain lands in various villages, including 4.68 hectares from Khasra No. 59/1 and 0.52 hectares from Khasra No. 68/3 in Selu, as reserved forest areas.
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The petitioner argued that since the land belonged to him, he was entitled to cut the teak trees growing on it without seeking permission. However, as an alternative, he had applied for permission to fell the trees on August 4, 2017, and requested the Court to direct authorities to decide on that application.
During the hearing, the Assistant Government Pleader representing the Forest Department and the Deputy Solicitor General of India appearing for the Centre strongly opposed the plea. They argued that the challenge was not only inordinately delayed—being filed after over seven decades—but also lacked legal merit, as the real intent appeared to be to obtain permission for tree felling rather than questioning the notification’s validity.
Further, it was pointed out that, as per the 7/12 land record, the land falls under Class II category, and hence the petitioner does not hold absolute ownership rights. They also submitted that felling of any trees requires prior permission from the Tehsildar.
After hearing arguments, the Court ruled that the petition challenging the 1955 notification was not maintainable due to the excessive delay. However, with regard to the application for permission to cut teak trees, the Court directed the Forest Department to consider the petitioner’s August 4, 2017, application in accordance with prevailing policies and decide the matter within eight weeks.
