Fifty families in Duari village in Rewa district have been fighting with the village panchayat over the ownership of five acres of land given to them by the district administration 13 years ago, although they do not have title deeds for the land. The residents claim that private builders are trying to grab the land with the help of the panchayat. In the past 12 years, the families have approached the panchayat, the Village Assembly, the tehsil office and the district collector demanding legal titles. They have also submitted many memorandums to the district administration. In response, the district authorities asked the sarpanch to resolve the issue. Two years ago, an antiencroachment team tried to demolish the houses of these 50 families, which led to a fight between the officials and the villagers. The latter burnt the vehicles of the officials to force them to retreat in order to save their homes. Sarpanch Narendra Shukla points out that according to the map of the revenue department, the land belongs to the government. He claims that the families are living illegally on a plot of government land meant for a community pond. The land is due for a beautification drive, which includes building of parks around the public pond, he told LCW. The residents filed a case against the sarpanch and district administration in the Jabalpur High Court last year, which is still pending.