MANGTU Vs. FINANCIAL COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS petition challenges an order dated 18.4.2001 passed by the Revenue Assistant under Section 11 and 85 of the Delhi Land Reforms Act, 1954 (DLRA) rejecting the application filed by the petitioner for declaration of bhumidari rights regarding certain agricultural land situated in village Shakarpur. The petition also challenges the order dated 29.10.2001 passed by the Deputy Commissioner (South-west District), New Delhi dismissing the petitioner's appeal and the order dated 14.2.2006 passed by the Financial Commissioner dismissing the second appeal filed by the petitioner against the aforementioned order.

(2.) THE facts leading to the filing of the present petition are that at the time of the commencement of the DLRA, one Smt. Chameli Devi, the widow of late Shri Munshi was declared bhumidar of half the share of the aforementioned land on the basis of the entries in the Revenue records. The petitioner and Shri Devi Singh were also declared bhumidars in respect of 1/4th share of the aforementioned land. The land in question originally belonged to one Shri Deena who had two sons namely Shri Molad and Shri Munshi. While the petitioner Shri Mangtu and Shri Devi Singh are grandsons of Shri Molad, Smt. Chameli Devi is the widow of Shri Munshi.

(3.) BY his order dated 18.4.2001, the Revenue Assistant dismissed the suit as not maintainable. The Revenue Assistant rejected the plea of the petitioner that there was no limitation for filing a suit to challenge entries of bhumidari in the Revenue record and observed that if such a plea of unlimited time for filing of a petition under Section 11 were permitted "it would create chaos". On the plea of Section 85 DLRA, it was held that the petitioner failed to prove exclusive possession. Finally, it was observed that after coming into force of DLRA, the concept of coparcenary under the Hindu Law was no longer applicable to the land in question. It was observed that the concept of proprietorship or coparcenary under the Hindu Law no longer survived after the enactment of DLRA.