Patna High Court on Tuesday stayed, till further orders, construction of a boundary wall by Riga Sugar Factory on land adjacent to its premises.

The state government had allocated the land in question, measuring 11 acres, to the factory in 1998. A division bench comprising Justice Navin Sinha and Justice Shivaji Pandey passed the direction on a PIL by Manorma Prasad, head of Usmari panchayat where the factory is located. In the PIL, the mukhiya had challenged the government’s decision to settle the land in favour of the factory.

While issuing a notice to the sugar factory, the bench also directed the state government to file its counter-affidavit within two weeks. The matter would come up for hearing two weeks later, once the state government and the factory file their replies.

Appearing for the petitioner, advocates Gopal Govind Mishra and Krishna Murari submitted that government records show the said land as gairmajarua aam (government land used by common people) and locals used it as a playground.

Mishra said even after settlement of the land in favour of the factory in 1998, the factory had not taken possession of the plot. Locals began protesting only recently when the factory began building a boundary wall around it.

Referring to a Supreme Court judgement, Mishra contended that the state government can’t allocate to anybody such gairmajarua aam land used as playground or park.

If the factory takes over the plot, called Vrindavan, the common man would be deprived use of it as a playground or for cultural events.