An attempt to “demarcate” a portion of a plot near Ranikuthi by a woman who claimed to have inherited it was thwarted by residents of the neighbourhood and members of local clubs, who held protests and blocked a busy intersection on Thursday afternoon.
The woman had obtained an order from Calcutta High Court that purportedly allowed her to demarcate her portion on the land, but the order could not be complied with even in the presence of police and officials in the state urban land ceiling department.
According to the petitioner’s advocate, this was the third time the court had ordered that the woman could get her land demarcated.
“The court has passed three orders allowing my client to get her portion demarcated,” said advocate Suddhasatya Banerjee. He said his client had inherited the portion of the plot that she wanted to demarcate after her father’s death.
Tapan Dasgupta, the local Trinamul councillor (of Ward 95), told The Telegraph that the ground — a 21.5-cottah plot — was the “lifeline” for young and old in the area and that people in the neighbourhood were “not ready to allow anyone to suddenly claim a portion of the land”.
“All the elderly people in the neighbourhood use this ground daily for their morning and evening walk. Children play football here. There are clubs that have been organising religious festivals for many years on the land. How come someone living outside the country suddenly come and claim that a part of the land belongs to that person?” Dasgupta said.
“Of the total ground that is spread across 21.5 cottah, the petitioner is claiming that she owns 7.5 cottah. The property is worth crores of rupees,” Dasgupta said.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya of the high court had on November 20 issued a ruling instructing the deputy commissioner in charge of the south suburban division of Kolkata police to help the urban land ceiling department complete the demarcation process of the “land in question”.
The court order said: “…the learned advocate representing the petitioner submits that in spite of issuing notice to demarcate the land on 1st November, 2023, the process could not be carried out due to resistance by the members of respondent no. 12 and Kali Puja which was organized by respondent no. 12. Certain temporary structures were erected which also prevented the team which went there to complete the demarcation process.”
“Respondent 12” is one of the three clubs that organises religious functions on the ground.
The order mentioned that the demarcation could not be completed on the previously assigned date because of “resistance by the respondent no. 12 and Kali Puja which was organised by the respondent no. 12”.
After the last hearing, the court had said the demarcation process had to be completed by November 30 and instructed Kolkata police to assist the other government wings in completing the job.
On Thursday, as officials of the urban land ceiling department went to the spot, hundreds of people descended on roads and started a blockade at the Ranikuthi crossing. The order could not be complied with.
Later in the evening, representatives of the other two clubs expressed their willingness to be party to the case.
“We will take legal recourse. The other two clubs will also move court seeking permission to become a party to the case,” said Dasgupta.