Khour’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ Farce: Encroachment on ‘Water body’ Demolished by DC in 2024 Re-Encroached Under Same Patwari’s Watch

Patwari Padam, Who Oversaw Retrieval, Now Allegedly Facilitates Re-Encroachment; Tehsildar Awaits ‘Report’ on Already Demarcated Land, Exposing Systemic Failure and Mockery of DC’s Orders

• In a shocking indictment of administrative credibility, prime Common Land Water Body “Gair Mumkin Choi” in Khour, which was dramatically cleared of an illegal banquet hall in a high-profile demolition drive ordered by DC Sachin Kumar Vaishya in February 2024, has been brazenly re-encroached with new walls and a locked gate.
• The re-encroachment has occurred under the tenure of the very same field official, Patwari Padam, who was part of the team that oversaw the original retrieval, raising grave suspicions of deep-rooted collusion between land grabbers and compromised Revenue officials.
• The current Tehsildar’s claim to SDM that he is awaiting a “report” from the Patwari before taking action has exposed a farcical bureaucratic logjam, as the land’s status as “Gair Mumkin Choi” (Common Land Water Body) was already confirmed by a high-level Joint Commission in 2024, making any further verification by the Patwari a questionable and suspicious delay tactic.

Jammu, July 17, 2025: In a stunning and deeply troubling turn of events that makes a mockery of the Jammu administration’s celebrated “zero tolerance” policy against land mafias, a prime parcel of (Comman Land) Water Body  “Gair Mumkin Choi” in Khour, which was triumphantly retrieved after the demolition of an illegal banquet hall in February 2024 on the direct orders of Deputy Commissioner Sachin Kumar Vaishya, has been brazenly re-encroached. The same patch of land, once a symbol of the administration’s tough stance, now stands again with a new boundary wall and a locked gate, a monument to systemic failure and the alleged deep-rooted collusion between land grabbers and the very officials tasked with protecting public assets.

The epicentre of this renewed controversy is Patwari Padam, the field-level Revenue official who holds the dubious distinction of being the man on the ground during both the celebrated demolition and the subsequent, silent re-occupation. This crucial detail transforms the incident from a simple case of re-encroachment into a damning exposé of how the administration’s highest orders can be systematically undermined from within, allegedly by the same individuals entrusted with their enforcement.

To recap the original incident, in February 2024, DC Sachin Kumar Vaishya led a widely hailed crackdown, ordering the demolition of an illegally constructed banquet hall in village Marchangi, Tehsil Khour. The action was executed by then SDM Khour, Satish Sharma, and then Tehsildar, Monika Sharma. It was established through a specially constituted Joint Commission that the land was water body “Gair Mumkin Choi,” a ( Common Land)and unequivocally Water Body. The demolition was lauded as a victory for the rule of law.

Just over a year later, that victory appears to be hollow. The same plot of land has been illegally re-occupied. When the matter was brought to the notice of the current SDM, he stated that he had immediately informed the concerned Tehsildar to take action. However, in a baffling display of bureaucratic paralysis, the Tehsildar claimed to SDM that he is yet to receive a report from Patwari Padam on the matter.

When Jammu Jottings tried to call concerned Tehsildar our phone was not picked by the official.

This excuse has raised serious red flags. Why does a Patwari, who is about to retire in a few months, need to “re-verify” the status of a piece of land that was already definitively demarcated and declared Water Body (Gair Mumkin Choi) by a five-member Joint Commission whose report was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner? This wait for a “report” from the very Patwari under whose tenure the re-encroachment happened is being seen as nothing but a deliberate and suspicious delay tactic, likely to aid the encroachers.

Patwari Padam’s recent conduct has also been controversial. He is reportedly the same official who recently faced the wrath of the public during a demarcation exercise in another area, where locals, protesting against his alleged wrongdoings, confronted and reportedly manhandled him.

This entire episode represents a colossal failure of governance. It raises the fundamental question: what is the use of high-profile demolition drives if the administration cannot protect the retrieved land for even a couple of years? It suggests that while the top brass of the administration, like the DC, may be committed to fighting corruption, the system can be easily sabotaged at the field level. It has turned the DC’s decisive 2024 order into a laughing stock and sends a demoralizing message to the public that land grabbers, with the right connections within the system, can always find a way back. The administration must now answer not only how this re-encroachment occurred, but also why the official who oversaw it is still in a position of authority, and what action will be taken to dismantle this nexus of corruption that is so brazenly challenging the writ of the government.