Availability of Statutory Remedy Bars Writ Jurisdiction Against Order Cancelling Long-Standing Jamabandi

The petitioner challenged an order dated 22.04.2026 passed by the Additional District Magistrate (ADM)-cum-Additional Collector, Jamui, in Jamabandi Cancellation Case No. 311/2024-25.

The impugned order cancelled Jamabandi No. 16/76, which had stood in the name of the petitioner's father since 1976, covering 8.61 acres in Mauza-Mangrar.

The petitioner alleged that the ADM failed to provide a proper hearing and ignored submitted documents.

The State raised a preliminary objection regarding the maintainability of the writ petition, citing the availability of an alternative statutory remedy.

1. Whether the writ petition is maintainable when a statutory remedy of appeal is available under the Bihar Land Mutation Act, 2011.

2. Whether the petitioner is entitled to interim protection against dispossession pending the filing of a statutory appeal.

Section 9 Clause (6)(a) of the Bihar Land Mutation Act, 2011 stipulates that an appeal against an order of the Additional Collector lies with the Collector of the district within 30 days.

Section 9 Clause (6)(b) of the Bihar Land Mutation Act, 2011 empowers the Collector to condone delays for sufficient reasons.

Section 9 Clause (6)(c) of the Bihar Land Mutation Act, 2011 mandates that the Collector must provide a reasonable opportunity of being heard before modifying or setting aside an order.

The court observed that the Bihar Land Mutation Act, 2011, provides a "categorical and definite provision" for appealing the cancellation of long-standing Jamabandis.

Since the petitioner approached the High Court directly without exhausting the statutory remedy under Section 9(6)(a), the court declined to exercise its extraordinary writ jurisdiction on the merits of the cancellation.

To balance legal procedure with equity, the court directed the petitioner to utilize the appellate forum and instructed the Collector to act as a fact-finding authority, mandating a speaking order and a personal hearing.

The Collector is directed to hear the appeal and pass a speaking order within six weeks thereafter; regarding the threat of dispossession, the Collector must decide on any interim application within three days of filing.