GOVIND PRASAD SHARMA Vs. BOARD OF REVENUE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN this application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for the issue of a writ of certiorari for quashing a decision of the Board of Revenue upholding in appeal an order of the Commissioner, Jabalpur Division, the question raised is as regards the Regality of a fine of Rs. 29,784/-imposed on the petitioner Govind prasad Sharma under Section 228 (7) of the Madhya Pradesh, Land Revenue code, 1954. Equivalent Citation:

(2.) THE matter arises thus. The petitioner-obtained in 1954 a mining lease for extracting iron ore from an area of 12. 59 acres of certain Khasra, numbers including a part of Khasra No. 537 situated in village Pratappur of Sihora tahsil of district Jabalpur. In 1955 the part of the Khasra No. 537 which had not been leased out to the applicant for extraction of iron ore was given to him for purposes subsidiary to mining. On 17th January 1956 the petitioner entered into a contract with one Smt. Sarla Devi Khemka for raising of iron ore from 8. 48 acres; out of the total area of 12. 59 acres, leased out to him by the State, According to this agreement, Sarla Devi undertook to deliver saleable iron ore above 62 per cent Fe. F. O. R. Sihora at a fixed charge of Rs. 12/ -. per ton. The agreement, which was for a duration of three years, inter alia required the raising contractor to "observe and perform" all the mining rules and regulations and all other labour laws in force and made the contractor alone responsible for payment of damages, loss or liabilities arising out of day to day working of the mine, resulting from neglience or non-observance of the mining rules and regulations or of labour laws in force for the time being. It also prohibited the raising contractor from mining or encroaching on any area outside the area shown in the plan annexed to the contract except for the purpose of stacking material or for building roads and structures.

(3.) IN December 1957 when the petitioner found that the raising contractor and persons working under and on behalf of her were extracting iron ore from area outside the one specified in the plan annexed to the "raising contract", he brought this fact to the notice of the Collector, Jabalpur, by addressing a letter on 5th december 1957. This has been admitted in the return filed on behalf of the respondents Nos. 2, 3 and 4. An enquiry was then held first by the Naib-Tahsildar and then by the Sub-Divisional Officer, Jabalpur, who submitted a report to the additional Collector that iron ore from that part of Khasra No. 537, which had not been given to the lessee for the purpose of extracting iron ore, had been extracted by the contractor; that 4,000 tons of iron ore was found lying on the spot that nearly 12,000 tons of iron ore was also found lying at Sihora railway station. The additional Collector then directed the seizure of this ore; and initiated proceedings against Govind Prasad Sharma and Smt. Sarla Devi under Section 247 (7) of the madhya Pradesh Land Revenue Code, 1959, In those proceedings the Additional collector, Jabalpur, finding that there was illegal extraction of iron ore from Khasra no. 537 and that for this both the petitioner Govind Prasad Sharma and the contractor Smt. Sarla Devi were equally responsible, imposed on the petitioner and Smt. Sarla Devi a penalty of Rs. 29,784/-each under Section 247 (7) of the 1939 Code.