AYAZ ALI Vs. NURUL ISLAM CHOUDHURY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS writ petition has put to challenge the order, on 10. 08. 2008, passed, in Revenue Appeal No. 123 (K)/2007, by the Assam Board of Revenue, Guwahati, admitting the appeal, preferred by the respondents herein, after lapse of 3 years 4 months 13 days, against the order, dated 31. 01. 2004, passed by the respondent No. 15, namely, Settlement Officer, Karimganj, in Misc. Case No. 17/1998, whereby the respondent No. 15 had directed correction of the record of rights by cancelling the names of the present appellants and restoring the patta, in question, in favour of the respondents.

(2.) I have heard Mr. I. A. Talukdar, learned counsel for the petitioner, and Mr. N. Dhar, learned counsel for the respondents. I have also heard Mr. R. Bora, learned Government Advocate, appearing on behalf of the respondent No. 5.

(3.) IT is submitted by Mr. Talukdar, learned counsel for the petitioners, that since the order, which stood impugned in the appeal before the learned Board of Revenue, is an order, which is appealable under Section 147, the respondents could have filed an appeal under Section 148 and the learned Board of Revenue could not have, therefore, entertained the application, in question, made under Section 151, merely because of the fact that this application had mentioned that it was an appeal under Section 151. Mr. Talukdar points out that when the respondents realized that their right to file an appeal under Section 147 stood barred by the period of limitation prescribed by Section 148, they preferred an appeal under Section 151 of the Regulations and thereby circumvented the provisions of Section 147 and, when considered in this light, it becomes clear that the application, made by the respondents herein, under Section 151, was not maintainable inasmuch as Section 151 will apply only to those cases, where there is no right of appeal under the Regulations. This apart, the period of limitation prescribed under Section 148, according to Mr. Talukdar, applies even to an application made under Section 151.