Section 482 CrPC Cannot Be Used to Claim Possession of Government Land Beyond Specific Judicial Mandates

The applicant sought directions under Section 482 Cr.P.C. to compel the Sub Divisional Magistrate, Nagod, to restore possession of a house at Khasra No. 723/1, Village Shivrajpur.

The dispute originated from Section 145 Cr.P.C. proceedings in 1995, where a Revisional Court later ordered the restoration of possession to the applicant.

Despite civil court judgments confirming the applicant's title and multiple High Court orders (M.Cr.C. No. 8757/2009) directing restoration, the applicant alleged non-compliance.

The State contended it had vacated the premises and offered possession via a notice dated 12.03.2026, but the applicant refused, allegedly claiming an additional 109,710 square feet of government land.

1. Whether the inherent powers of the High Court under Section 482 Cr.P.C. can be invoked to secure possession of property beyond the scope of previous judicial orders, specifically regarding alleged government land.

2. Whether the respondent authorities had substantially complied with the previous judicial mandates regarding the "disputed house".

The court primarily applied Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Cr.P.C.), which saves the inherent powers of the High Court to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice.

The court underscored the principle that inherent jurisdiction cannot be utilized as a device to adjudicate complex property claims or to secure possession of government land under the guise of enforcing previous orders.

The Court observed that while binding judicial orders for the restoration of the "disputed house" existed, those orders attained finality only regarding the physical house structure and not the vast acreage claimed by the applicant.

The Court found that the State had made bona fide efforts to hand over the house as per the 12.03.2026 notice, but the applicant was attempting to use the current petition to expand the scope of those orders to include 109,710 square feet of land which "prima facie appears to be government land".

The Court reasoned that Section 482 Cr.P.C. is intended to prevent injustice, not to serve as a substitute for civil proceedings where a party seeks to establish a claim over additional territory not covered by the original litigation.

The Court ruled that any claim to additional land must be established through appropriate civil proceedings, however, the Court directed respondent Nos. 1 to 3 to expeditiously conclude the pending formal proceedings for handing over the possession of the house in a fair and transparent manner.