GHANSHYAM Vs. SUB DIVISIONAL OFFICER SALON DISTRICT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS petition is directed against notice (Annexure 3) which has been issued to the petitioners in a case under sections 33/39, U. P. Lard Revenue Act, 1901. The case of the petitioners is that Pattas were granted, to the petitioners by the Land Management Committee in respect of certain plots situate in village Jairampur in the year 19V 5. The names of petitioners were mutated on the basis of the said Pattas and they were duly recorded as Bhumidhars with non-transferable rights in the Khatauni. After sometime proceedings for corrections of papers under sections 33/39 of the said Act, were started and the impugned notices were issued to the petitioner to file objections, if any. The petitioners riled objections on 28-9-1989. It is stated that the cases have been submitted by the Naib Tahsildar, Salon to Sub- Divisional Officer, Salon, Rae Bareli opposite party no. 1, for orders and it is said that the Pattas granted in favour of the petitioners will be cancelled. The petitioners have accordingly approached this court under Article 226 of the Constitution for quashing the impugned notices and for restraining the opposite party no. I from proceedings with the cases pending against the petitioners under sections 33/39 of the Act.

(2.) THE learned counsel for the petitioners has contended that the jurisdiction to cancel the Pattas is vested in the Collector under section 198 (4) of the U. P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 and as the Collector is a Persona Designata, the opposite party no. 1 has no jurisdiction to proceed with the cases under sections 33/39 of the said Act. In support of this contention, learned counsel has relied on the decision of a learned single Judge of this court in Shiv Lai v. Board of Revenue, 1985 AWC 17=1985 ALJ 120. He has been held that the power under section 198 in connection with the cancellation of the lease is to be exercised only by the Collector and not by the Sub Divisional Officer. THE Collector has been given power as Persona Designata, which obviously means that he is a specifically empowered Tribunal and is a person or authority specially constituted or empowered to entertain and adjudicate upon the particular type of litigation mentioned in section 198 (4) of the U. P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act.

(3.) THE Collector is appointed under section 14 of the U. P. Land Revenue Act, 1901 which provides that the State Government shallappolnt in each District an officer who shall through out his district exercise all the powers and discharge all the duties conferred and imposed on a Collector by this Act or any other law for the time being in force. THE Assistant Collector, whether of the 1st Class or Hnd Class, is appointed under section 15 and it is provided in section 18 that the State Government may place any Assistant Collector of the 1st Class in charge of one or more sub-divisions of a district and remove him therefrom. Section 18 (2) provides that such Assistant Collector shall be called 'Assistant Collector incharge of sub-division of a district or a Sub-Divisional Officer and shall exercise all the powers and discharge all the duties conferred and imposed upon him by the Act and by any other law for the time being in force subject to the control of the Collector. It may be . mentioned that various revenue courts have been constituted under the U. P. Land Revenue Act and by virtue of section 4 (8) thereof, Collector and Sub-Divisional Officer, both are Revenue Courts.