Bombay High Court
ARFAN VAHAB BUBEREversusTHE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA THR. ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY REVENUE AND FOREST DEPARTMENT AND ORS
- Decided
- Disposal
- Dismissed
Holding
The order is appealable to the State Government, and therefore the writ petition is dismissed with liberty to file an appeal and seek a stay.
Summary
The petitioner, Arfan Vahab Bubere, challenged an order of the Additional Divisional Commissioner, Konkan Division, Mumbai, issued in an appeal under Section 247, alleging that the order was not subject to further appeal before the State Government. The petitioner feared imminent eviction and invoked the Supreme Court’s decision in Rohan Vijay Nahar v. State of Maharashtra, contending that the Indian Forest Act’s procedural requirements, particularly service of notice, had not been complied with, rendering the declaration of the land as private forest invalid. The Court examined whether the order was amenable to writ jurisdiction or only to an appeal before the State Government. It held that the statutory remedy of appeal to the State Government was available and therefore the writ petition could not be entertained. Consequently, the Court dismissed the writ petition, granting the petitioner liberty to file the appropriate appeal and to seek a stay, directing the appellate authority to decide any stay application within four weeks of the appeal’s filing. The petition was disposed of accordingly.
Issues considered
- Whether the order of the Additional Divisional Commissioner is subject to writ jurisdiction or only to an appeal before the State Government.
- Whether non‑compliance with notice requirements under the Indian Forest Act invalidates the declaration of the land as private forest.
- Whether a stay of eviction can be granted pending the filing of the statutory appeal.
Legislation cited
Subjects
- writ petition
- appeal jurisdiction
- Indian Forest Act
- notice service
- eviction
- stay order
- Section 247
Judgment
NISHA Digitally signed by
NISHA SANDEEP
SANDEEP CHITNIS
Date: 2026.08.29
CHITNIS 16:42:19 +0530 912-wp..11184.2026.doc
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION NO.11184 OF 2026
Arfan Vahab Bubere ...Petitioner
Versus
State of Maharashtra and Ors. ...Respondents
Mr. Abhijit Patil for the Petitioner.
Mr. S. H. Kankal, A.G.P. for the Respondent-State.
CORAM: BHARATI DANGRE &
ASHISH S. CHAVAN, JJ.
DATE : 27th AUGUST 2026
P.C. :
1. The petition raises a challenge to the order passed by the
Additional Divisional Commissioner, Konkan Division, Mumbai, in an
appeal filed under Section 247 and the learned A.G.P. raises a specific
objection that against the said order an Appeal lies before the State
Government.
2. The learned counsel for the petitioner states that he is a
aware that the order is appealable, however, in the wake of the
N. S. Chitnis 1/3
912-wp..11184.2026.doc
urgency, he has moved this Court, since there is every apprehension
that the petitioner may be evicted. He would place reliance upon the
decision of the Apex Court in the case of Rohan Vijay Nahar and
Others v/s State of Maharashtra and Others1, to submit that the
procedure required to be followed under the Indian Forest Act has not
been adhered to, and at the end of the adjudication, the proof of
service of notice on the owners if not proved, then the whole
proceedings initiated for declaring the land as private forest would
fail.
3. We quite appreciate the said contention but if the remedy
is available to the petitioner in the form of an appeal before the State
Government, we dismiss the writ petition with liberty to file an appeal
along with an application for grant of stay and we expect the
Appellate Authority to consider the application for grant of stay
expeditiously and, in no case, within a period of four weeks from the
date of institution of the appeal.
1 (2026) 2 SCC 182
N. S. Chitnis 2/3
912-wp..11184.2026.doc
The Writ Petition is accordingly disposed of.
ASHISH S. CHAVAN, J. BHARATI DANGRE, J.
N. S. Chitnis 3/3
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