PANDIA NADAR Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Tamil Nadu Land Encroachment Act, 1905 is impugned in these petitions as unconstitutional and void. Notices have been found issued to the petitioners under Section 6 of that Act in order to evict them from a certain piece of land claimed to be Government land. The challenge to the constitutional validity of the Act is based solely on the decision of this Court in Northern India Caterers v. State of Punjab, (1967) 3 SCR 309 = AIR 1967 SC 1581). In that case the validity of the Punjab Public Premises and Land (Eviction and Rent Recovery) Act, 1959 was under consideration. The State had leased its premises to the appellant therein for running a hotel and when the lease expired called upon him to hand over vacant possession of the premises. On the appellant failing to do so the Collector issued a notice under Section 4 of the Punjab Act requiring the appellant to show cause why an order of eviction should not be passed under Section 5. This Court while holding that "there is an intelligible diffentia between occupiers and that the classification has a reasonable relation to the object of the Act and does not offend Article 14" also held that "Section 5 of the Act confers an additional remedy over and above the remedy by way of suit and thereby violates Art.14 by providing two alternative remedies to the Government and in leaving it to the unguided discretion of the Collector to resort to one or to the other and to pick and choose some of those in occupation of public properties and premises for the application of the more drastic procedure under Section 5". Two of the learned Judges who constituted the Bench, Hidayatullah and Bachawat, JJ. however held that "the unauthorised occupant is not denied equal protection of the laws merely because the Government has the option of proceeding against him either by way of a suit or under the Act."

(2.) The Tamil Nadu Act is entitled "an Act to provide measures for checking unauthorized occupation of lands which are the properties of Government. "Section 2 of the Act defines the property of Government as:

(3.) In this recent decision in Maganlal Chhagganlal (P) Ltd. v. Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay pronounced on 11-4-1974, (reported in AIR 1974 SC 2009) this Court had occasion to consider the constitutional validity of Chapter V-A of the Bombay Municipal Corporation Act and the Bombay Government Premises (Eviction) Act. According to the provisions of S.105-A contained in Chapter V-A there under consideration, the Commissioner in relation to premises belonging to or vesting in, or taken on lease by the corporation and the General Manager (also defined as the Commissioner) of the Bombay Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking in relation to premises of the corporation which vest in it for the purposes of that undertaking were granted certain powers of eviction in respect of unauthorised occupation of any respect of unauthorised occupation of any corporation premises. Unauthorised occupation is defined as occupation by any person of corporation premises without authority for such occupation and includes the continuance in occupation by any person of the premises after the authority under which he was allowed to occupy the premises has expired or has been duly determined. Under Sec.105-B the Commissioner, by notice served on the person in unauthorised occupation, could ask him to vacate if he had not paid for a period of more than two months the rent or taxes lawfully due from him in respect of such premises; or sub-let, contrary to the terms or conditions of his occupation, the whole or any part of such premises; or committed, or is committing, such acts of waste as are likely to diminish materially the value, or impair substantially the utility, of the premises; or otherwise acted in contravention of any of the terms, express or implied, under which he is authorised to occupy such premises; or if any person is in unauthorised occupation of any corporation premises; or any corporation premises in the occupation of any person are required by the corporation in the public interest. Before making such an order the Commissioner should issue a notice calling upon the person concerned to show cause why an order of eviction should not be made and specify the grounds on which the order of eviction is proposed to be made. The person concerned can file a written statement and produce documents and is entitled to appear before the Commissioner by advocate, attorney or pleader. Persons failing to comply with the order of eviction as well as any other person was obstructs eviction can be evicted by force. Under Section 105-C there is power to recover rent or damages as arrears of property taxes. A person ordered to vacate on the grounds of being in arrears of rent or acting in contravention of the terms under which he is authorised to occupy the premises could be allowed to continue if he satisfies the Commissioner. The Commissioner has, for the purpose of holding any inquiry, the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, when trying a suit, in respect of (a) summoning and enforcing the presence of any person and examining him on oath, (b) requiring the discovery and production of documents, and (c) any other matter which may be prescribed by regulations. An appeal from every order of the Commissioner lies to the principal Judge of the City Civil Court or such other judicial officer as the principal Judge may designate. The appeal is to be disposed of as expeditiously as possible. Subject to the results of the appeal every order of the Commissioner or the appellate officer is final. The power to make regulations under the Act includes the power to make regulations in respect of holding of inquiries and the procedure to be followed in such appeals. The provisions of the Bombay Government Premises (Eviction) Act are more or less similar except that they relate to Government premises and the power to order eviction is given to the competent authority not lower in rank than that of a Deputy Collector or an Executive Engineer appointed by the State Government. It was argued before this Court that as there were two procedures available to the Corporation and the State Government, one by way of a suit under the ordinary law and the other under either of the two Acts, which has harsher and more onerous than the procedure under the ordinary law, the latter is hit by Article 14 of the Constitution in the absence of any guidelines as to which procedure may be adopted. There also reliance was wholly placed on the decision in the Northern India Caterers' case (1967) 3 SCR 399 . After an exhaustive discussion of all the relevant decisions this Court came to the conclusion that the principles deducible from those decisions were as follows:-