SUIJA Vs. HARDEVA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by special leave is directed against the judgment and order of the High Court of Punjab in Letters Patent Appeal No. 146 of 1965 whereby the High Court dismissed in limine the Letters Patent Appeal filed by the appellant Surja against the judgment of the learned Single Judge allowing the writ petition filed by the respondent, Hardeva.

(2.) The relevant facts for determining the points raised before us as follows:Hardeva, respondent before us, is a big landlord of village Punniwala Mota in Sirsa Tahsil of Hissar District. Surja, the appellant, was an old tenant of Hardeva and had been cultivating the land in dispute since about 1949. Section 18 of the Punjab Security of Land Tenures Act 1953, (Punj. Act X of 1953)-hereinafter referred to as the Act-entitles a tenant of a land-owner other than a small land-owner to puchase from the land-owner the land held by him, but not included in the reserved area of the land-owner if he satisfies the conditions laid down in that Section. Section 18 (1) and (2) may be set out.

(3.) Hardeva then filed a revision before the Commissioner. In the grounds of revision dated October 27, 1960, various grounds were taken but there was no ground regarding reservation of land or selection of land under Section 5-B of the Act. On February 1, 1961, Hardeva filed an application in the Court of the Commissioner. In this application he stated that the entire land in dispute was included in the permissible area selected by him under Section 5-B of the Act by submitting form "E". He further stated that the Financial Commissioner had in Karam Singh vs. Angrez Singh, (1960) 39 Lah LT 57 held that selection under Section 5-B (1) had the same force as reservation under Section 5 of the Act, and this disentitled Surja from purchasing the land in dispute. He prayed that he may be allowed to raise the plea of selection under Section 5-B (1). He stated that this plea involved a question of jurisdiction and in the interst of justice he may be permitted to raise this plea as an additional ground of revision.