The Odisha High Court on Thursday asked forest and revenue officials of both the Central and State Governments to inquire into an alleged forestland grab by certain influential persons in Dharmasala block of Jajpur district and submit reports within two weeks. The HC notice came in connection with the alleged land grab of about 100 acres of forestland by one Gokarneswar Trust, which is headed by senior BJD MP Kalpataru Das’ wife Pratima Das. Taking up a PIL filed by one Iswar Das and three others of Dharmasala, a Division Bench headed by Chief Justice Amitava Roy issued the notices to the Assistant Director General of Forests (ADGF) in the Union Forest Ministry and the Additional Principal Conservator of Forests (APCF) of Eastern Zone. Apart from these two Central Government officers, notices were also issued to the Odisha Forest Secretary and Revenue Secretary. All these four officers and the MP’s wife as chairman of the trust have been arraigned as respondents in the writ petition, informed the petitioners’ advocate Srinath Mishra. The petitioners have alleged that about 100 acres of forestland has been grabbed by influential local political leaders who have set up an educational institution and constructed concrete houses on it. The land grab incident first came to light in March 2012 when locals objected to construction of permanent structures in forestland. “Although the Union Forest Ministry, following a petition made by Iswar Das in November 2013 had asked the State Government to inquire about the alleged land grab, State Government officials sat over the Central Government’s order and did not take any action,” the petition has stated. The petition further said the ADCF’s office in Kolkata had also written letters to Odisha Forest and Revenue Secretaries in November last year to conduct a joint inquiry and submit a report within two months.