SHIVAJIRAM RAMAJI KHATI Vs. BOARD OF REVENUE GWALIOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS application by the petitioner under Article 226 of the Constitution of India is to quash the order dated 10-2-1975 of the Board of Revenue partly allowing his appeal and directing the Collector, Dewas to pass a fresh order entrusting all the duties of a Patel of the village to the Gram Panchayat.

(2.) THE petitioner was appointed as the Patel of village Barkheda Tonk by the Collector, Dewas. Subsequent to his appointment as the Patel, the Gram panchayat passed a resolution to the effect that the duties of the Patel may be entrusted to it. On the recommendation of the Collector, Dewas, the State government by virtue of the powers vested in it under section 229 of the M. P. Land Revenue Code (hereinafter referred to as the Code) passed by its Memo dated October 10, 1973 sanctioning the entrustment of the duties of the Patel to the Gram Panchayat Barkheda Tonk tahsil Sonkatch. Aggrieved by the order of the Government, the petitioner approached the Collector and filed an application. Thereupon the Collector by his order dated March 30, 1974 entrusted the realisation of the land revenue and work of other recoveries of the Patel to the Gram Panchayat and authorised the Panch Daulatram to perform the duties and also ordered that the remaining duties pertaining to the office of the Patel shall continue to be performed by the Patel, the petitioner herein. Aggrieved by the order of the Collector, both the Gram Panchayat as well as the petitioner preferred appeals to the Additional Commissioner, who dismissed both the appeals. The Gram Panchayat did not file a further appeal to the Board of revenue but, however, the petitioner preferred an appeal under section 49 of the code to the Board of Revenue in respect of the portion of the order of the additional Commissioner, which adversely affected him. The Board of Revenue was of the view that section 229 of the Code provides for the entrustment of all the duties pertaining to the Patel of any village to the Gram Panchayat by the state Government and there is no provision therein for entrustment of some only of the duties to the Gram Panchayat and the remaining to the Patel or any other individual, and consequently the appeal was partly allowed with a direction to the Collector to pass a fresh order entrusting all the duties of the Patel to this gram Panchayat.

(3.) THIS order of the Board of Revenue is sought to be quashed by the petitioner in this application. The submission of Shri Garg, learned counsel for the petitioner is three-fold