SUMITRA DEVI Vs. SUSHILA DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) List revised. No one has appeared for the Respondents. Heard learned Counsel for the Petitioner.

(2.) Petitioner through registered sale-deed dated 25.9.1984 purchased land ad-measuring 520 Square Meter out of Plot No. 159 Ka total area 0.73 acres from Respondent No. 5 - Shri Pal. Earlier Respondent Nos. 5 to 10 had purchased total Plot No 159 Ka from its previous bhumidhar Sushila Devi, Respondent No. 1 on 27.2.1975. The plot is grove and entered as such in revenue records. Ram Nath, Respondent No. 2 and others purchased plot No. 159 Kha area 0.09 acre from Sushila Devi in 1985. They first challenged the sale-deed dated 25.9.1994 alongwith two other similar sale-deeds through a civil suit only on the ground that the deeds were in violation of and hit by Section 168-A of U.P. Zamindari Abolition & Land Reforms Act (the said Section has been repealed in 2004). The said section prohibited sale of fragment of agricultural land. The suit (Suit No. 621 of 1986) was dismissed on 26.2.1988 by 5th Additional Munsif, Etah. Copy of the said judgment is annexed as Annexure-I to the writ petition. In the said judgment, it was specifically held that in view of the fact that the property in question was grove and not situate in consolidated area, Section 168-A of the Act was not attracted. Against the said judgment, Civil Appeal No. 64 of 1988 was filed, which was dismissed by 7th Additional District Judge, Etah on 4.8.1990. Copy of the said judgment is annexed as Annexure-II to the writ petition. The appellate Court also held that Section 168-A of the Act was not attracted. It was further held that Plaintiffs had no right to challenge the sale-deed on the ground of violation of Section 168-A and only Collector or Gram Sabha could do that. Learned Counsel for the Petitioner states that against the said judgment and decree, no second appeal was filed.

(3.) Strangely enough inspite of the decision of civil Court Ram Nath Respondent No. 2 filed case/suit under Section 168-A of U.P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 before the Additional Collector, Etah. The Petitioner appeared in the said case and filed the judgment of the civil Court and took the plea of res judicata. However, the Additional Collector, Etah even after referring to civil Courts' judgments, by his order dated 25.2.1994 declared that the sale-deed dated 27.2.1975 through which Sushila Devi had sold whole Plot No. 159 Ka to Respondent Nos. . 5 to 10 was void and hit by Section 168-A of the U.P. Z.A. & L.R. Act. Consequently the sale-deed by Respondent No. 5 to the Petitioner dated 25.9.1984 and the other two sale-deeds of 1984 were also held to be void. Against the said judgment and order, revision was filed being Revision No. 123 of 1994 before Additional Commissioner, Agra Division, Agra, who dismissed the revision on 12.12.2007, hence this writ petition.