ANNASAHEB Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This intra court appeal under Section 4 of the Karnataka High Court of Act, 1961 against the order dated 27.02.2018 passed by the learned single judge dismissing W.P.Nos.205311/2016 and 205648- 650/2016 (LR) filed by the appellants.

(2.) The case of the appellants is that their grandfather and the father were landlords holding 484 acres 24 guntas of agricultural D - Class lands at Neginal village, Shivangi village and Devarahipparagi village. That the father of the appellants had filed declaration declaring their holding of lands in Form No.11 under Section 66 of the Karnataka Land Reforms Act (for short, 'KLR Act') mentioning the names of their family members and the extent of alienation made by them and the extent of their entitlement. That the Special Thasildar, Basavana Bagewadi on receipt of the declaration filed under Section 66 of the Act had passed Order on 07.04.1976 in KLR/D/SR/728 vide Annexure-B holding that the father of the declarant was having surplus land of 282 acres 06 guntas and that the said order had been passed by the Special Thasildar without issuing any notice to the declarant or without recording the statement of the parties and without having any jurisdiction to pass the impugned order.

(3.) That Special Tahsildar had distributed the excess land of the declarant to the landless persons by order dated 07.03.1983, 02.04.1983 and 03.07.1984 vide Annexures-C, D & E, respectively without initiating the proceedings under Section 77 of the Act and that the said orders passed by the Special Thasildar were not communicated either to the declarant or to his family members. It is the aforesaid orders which have been questioned by the appellants in the aforesaid writ petitions. The learned single judge of this court taking note of the fact that as on 07.04.1976, the Special Thasildar had competent jurisdiction to pass orders in the proceedings, conducted under Sections 66 and 67 of the Act and had held that the challenge to the said order would not survive and the subsequent orders at Annexure-C, D & E to the writ petition by distributing the land to the landless persons by the Thasildar cannot be called in question after expiry of 40 years had dismissed the said writ petitions. Thus, the aforesaid order of the learned single judge is under challenge in this writ appeal.