CHAMANLAL R PATEL Vs. STATE OF A P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These four Civil Revision Petitions arise out of four declarations filed separately by four persons, the four petitioners respectively in the above four Civil Revision Petitions, under Section 8 of the Andhra Pradesh land Reforms (Ceiling on Agricultural Holdings) Act, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act')

(2.) These four petitioners formed into a partnership called "M/s Mahes- war Plantation and Agricultural Firm''. After constituting themselves as a firm, under a registered sale deed dated 17-6-1970, they purchased Ac. 160.97 cents of dry land. The petitioners Filed their declarations showing their individual holdings as 1/4th share in Ac. 160- 97 cents purchased by them in the name of the firm. The Land Reforms Tribunal Madanapalle considering the four declarations together and treating the entire extent of Ac. 160-97 cents of land as belonging to one legal entity. the firm, and all the four declarations as single declaration made by the firm constituting the four partners, computed the extent of Ac. 160-97 cents as 3.0610 standard holdings and held that the declarants are holding 2.0610 standard holding of land in excess of the ceiling area. Aggrieved by that, the four petitioners preferred four separate appeals before the land Reforms Appellate Tribunal Chittoor. The Appellate Tribunal agreed with the-view taken by the land Reforms Tribunal, Madanapalle and dismissed the four appeals. Hence these four civil Revision Petitions respectively by the four partners of the firm.

(3.) It appears that the petitioners are not owning separately any other land apart from the one purchased by - them in the name of the firm. All the four partners are having equal shares in the firm. Therefore each of them is having 1/4th interest in Ac. 160-97 cents of the land purchased. On the ground that the frm is also a person as defined under section 3 (o) of the Actind such a person has to file a declaration as provided under section 8 of the Act and therefore the four declarations respectively filed by the four petitioners have to be clubbed together as one filed by the firm and not by the individual partners, the Tribunals found the entire extent of Ac. 160.97 cent of land as one holding and accordingly determined the excess as mentioned above.