SAMPURNANAND Vs. COMMISSIONER GORAKHPUR DIVISION GORAKHPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petition questions the correctness and legality of the order of the learned Commissioner, Gorakhpur Division Gorakhpur dated 31st March, 2011 in an appeal filed by the State of U.P. in proceedings under the U.P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1960. The appeal was filed by the State against the order of the prescribed authority dated 4.6.2009 under Section 10(2) of the said Act whereby the learned prescribed authority had dropped the ceiling proceedings against the petitioner holding that the petitioner had no surplus land under the aforesaid Act to be declared as such.

(2.) The dispute has a chequered history since the year 1974. The petitioner is admittedly the adopted son of Ram Lagan Das who was the original tenure holder against whom notices were issued on 1.10.1974. Vide order dated 18.12.1974 the prescribed authority declared an area of 31.59 acres as surplus land in the hands of the tenure holder. This order was passed ex-parte to the tenure holder Ram Lagan Das without any notice having been served on him as he had already died on 21.11.1974. The petitioner, who succeeded Ram Lagan Das, moved an application before the prescribed authority mentioning the aforesaid fact who set aside his order on 28.1.1975. Simultaneously, it appears that the proceedings under the Ceiling Act were challenged on certain grounds in writ petition no. 1840 of 1975 and further proceedings had been stayed on 10.2.1975.

(3.) A fresh notice was issued to the petitioner on 22.5.1976 under the amended Act. The prescribed authority after calling upon the petitioner to file his return proceeded to consider the same as also the evidence on record and framed nine issues. Issue No. 3 related to transfer of the land under a gift deed dated 2.11.1970 said to have been executed by late Ram Lagan Das in favour of Ram Asni Devi to the extent of an area of 11.84 acres of Village Gopala. The other issues framed were in relation to the exemptions sought by the petitioner on account of reduction of area during consolidation operations, the distribution of land between the family members, the wrong inclusion of certain land of village Gidahi and Gopala which had already been subject matter of proceedings under the Old Act of 1960 and had already vested in the State, land of abadi and land acquired for canal having been wrongly included in the ceiling proceedings, grove land and the dispute of irrigated and unirrigated land.