HC quashes ACB proceedings in 116-kanal land mutation case

Revenue irregularity cannot become criminal misconduct without material showing corrupt intent

19/09/2026

JAMMU, Sep 18: The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has quashed Anti-Corruption Bureau proceedings against several petitioners in a case concerning mutation of 116 kanals and 12 marlas of land, holding that an alleged error in the exercise of statutory powers cannot by itself be treated as criminal misconduct or conspiracy.
Justice Sanjay Parihar, while allowing the connected petitions, quashed proceedings arising from FIR No. 05/2021 dated February 3, 2021, registered by the ACB Jammu under the J&K Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 120-B RPC, insofar as they related to the petitioners before the court. The case concerned Mutation Nos. 558, 559 and 564. The ACB had alleged that Revenue Officers abused their official position and violated provisions of the Agrarian Reforms Act and settlement instructions while conferring ownership rights, allegedly resulting in evasion of stamp duty.
The petitioners argued that the mutations had been attested by competent Revenue Officers in exercise of their statutory jurisdiction and that the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, had subsequently declined to disturb the mutations while directing recovery of the requisite stamp duty and other charges.
The High Court observed that there was no independent material indicating bribery, dishonest abuse of official position or a prior meeting of minds between the petitioners and Revenue Officials.
The court held that an alleged irregularity committed in the exercise of statutory jurisdiction could not, merely by describing the resulting benefit as an "undue advantage", be converted into an allegation of criminal misconduct.
The court further stressed that criminal proceedings could not be used as a substitute for the statutory mechanism available for correcting an allegedly erroneous revenue adjudication. Senior Advocate P.N. Raina with J.A. Hamal appeared for one set of petitioners, while Rahul Raina represented petitioner Shakun Singh. P.D. Singh, Deputy Advocate General, appeared for the UT/ACB.

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