PATEL RANGEGOWDA Vs. LAND REFORMS APPELLATE AUTHORITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner, questioning the legality and validity of the order dated 12-5-1989 in No. LRAA (RA) No. 57 of 1986 on the file of the Land Reforms Appellate Authority, Hassan district, reversing the order passed by the Land Tribunal, Alur Taluk, Hassan District, Hassan, has presented this land reforms revision petition.

(2.) THE petitioner claiming to be the tenant in respect of lands bearing Survey Nos. 18/2, 51, 66 and 65 measuring 29 guntas; 1 acre 6 guntas; 6 guntas and 32 guntas respectively, situate at bellavara Village, Alur Taluk, Hassan District, had filed Form 7 for grant of occupancy rights in his favour. The said application had come up for consideration before the Land Tribunal, alur-2nd respondent herein on 26-10-1979. The Land Tribunal has granted the occupancy rights in favour of the petitioner. Being aggrieved by the said order passed by the Land Tribunal, the 4th respondent-deceased E. G. Ramesh had filed writ petition before this Court in No. 9690 of 1981. In view of the amendment to the Karnataka Land Reforms Act, 1961, the Appellate authority has been constituted and this Court by its order dated 1-7-1986 has transferred the said writ petition to the Land Reforms Appellate Authority, Hassan District, Hassan and renumbered as (LRAA) RA No. 57 of 1986. Before the Appellate Authority, the parties have filed LA. for adducing additional evidence. The said LA. has been allowed and additional evidence has been recorded. The Appellate Authority, after conducting enquiry in strict compliance of the karnataka Land Reforms Appellate Authority Rules, 1986, in view of the categorical statement made by the petitioner and after appreciating the oral and documentary evidence in para Nos. 17, 18 and 19 of its order, has set aside the order passed by the Land Tribunal and rejected the application filed by the petitioner in Form 7. Further, liberty has been reserved to the appellant/4th respondent to establish his title to the lands in dispute in a Civil Court and passed an order on 12th May, 1989. Being aggrieved by the order passed by the Land Reforms appellate Authority, Hassan, as referred above, the petitioner felt necessitated to present the instant revision petition.

(3.) THE principal ground urged by the petitioner in this revision petition is that, order passed by the Appellate Authority is bereft of reasoning and it has not considered the statements made by the neighbouring landlords and has not given sufficient opportunity to the petitioner to substantiate his case and hence it is against the principles of natural justice being against Article 14 of the Constitution of India. Further, the impugned order is illegal arbitrary and is a non-speaking order. The Appellate Authority has wrongly interfered with the well-considered order passed by the Tribunal and has ignored the evidence on record in coming to its wholly wrong conclusions. Further, the Appellate Authority has failed to appreciate evidence and also take note of the civil proceedings that have gone on between and among the parties to the proceedings in respect of the very lands. Therefore, the impugned order passed by the Land reforms Appellate Authority, Hassan is liable to be set aside and the order passed by the Land tribunal, Alur is liable to be confirmed.