COLLECTOR Vs. RAMESHBHAI JOITARAM PATEL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) SHRI Satyam Chhaya, learned AGP for the State, Shri N.R. Joshi, learned counsel under the authority of Shri I.M.Bengali, learned counsel for respondents no. 1 and 2.

(2.) THE short facts necessary for disposal of the present writ application are that Mamlatdar, after receiving information that certain agricultural land belonging to one Ramsingji Dhulaji was illegally transferred in favour of the respondents Rameshbhai Patel and Shakriben, wife of Prahladbhai Patel, commenced proceedings under Section 84 -C of the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948. Appropriate notices were issued and and the parties were given opportunity to lead evidence. After recoding evidence and hearing the parties, the Mamlatdar held that the respondents Rameshbhai Patel and Shakriben Patel, not being agriculturists, were not entitled to purchase the land, he accordingly directed vesting of the land in the State Government. The present respondents challenged the said order before the Deputy Collector, who in turn, dismissed the appeal. The matter was taken to the Gujarat Revenue Tribunal. The Tribunal, in its turn, allowed the revision and remanded the matter back to the Mamlatdar for consideration afresh. The Mamlatdar, after providing an opportunity of hearing to the parties, again held against the interest of the present respondents. The order was again taken up in appeal, in the appeal, an application for stay was filed. But the Deputy Collector refused to exercise discretion in favour of the respondents and rejected the application. The order rejecting the prayer for grant of stay was, then, challenged before the Gujarat Revenue Tribunal. It appears that in the meanwhile, the learned Collector relied upon the order passed by the Mamlatdar and non -grant of stay by the Deputy Collector and after taking into consideration that possession of the land was already taken, allotted the land in favour of the petitioner no.2, that is, Executive Engineer, National Highway Division, Gandhinagar, for construction/development of the road. The said order was also challenged by the present respondents before the Gujarat Revenue Tribunal.

(3.) THE Tribunal granted interim stay in favour of the present respondents, the said order came to be challenged in Special Civil Application No. 6577 of 1995. However, the said writ application came to be dismissed on 20.9.96 as infructuous.