STATE OF KERALA Vs. KOMBIKHADEESA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The State and the Custodian of Vested Forests are the appellants in the former appeal. The owner of a private forest who was the applicant before the Forest Tribunal is the appellant in the latter. Both of them assail the order of the Forest Tribunal, Kozhikode in O. A. 225 of 1976. The applicant claimed exemption in respect of 20 acres of land in Sy. No. 685/IA of Thariode Village, South Wynad Taluk in Kozhikode District. That application was considered along with O.A.No.226/76. Both were dismissed by the Forest Tribunal on an earlier occasion. In M. F. A. Nos. 538 and 551 of 1978, this Court set aside that common order and remitted the matter for reconsideration to the Tribunal,

(2.) The only point which the State Government and the Custodian of Vested Forests urge in M. F. A. 556/83 is that the Tribunal should have found that the area which the applicant was entitled to retain was the area determined in Ext. P1 proceedings of the Land Tribunal as on 1-1-1970. Appellants urge that the Tribunal went wrong in determining the area which the applicant was entitled to retain as 15 acres and that too as on 10-5-1971.

(3.) It is not disputed before us that the Act has to be applied as on the appointed day, specified in S.2(a) of Act 26 of 1971. S.3(3) provides that: