BALWANT RAM Vs. FINANCIAL COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this common judgment, I purpose to dispose of Civil Writ Petition Nos. 319 and 359 of 1972, as they arise out of the same facts and raise the same questions of law.

(2.) Mahant Bhan Singh was a big land-owner. He filed two separate applications under Sections 14-A(i) of Punjab Security of Land Tenures Act in the Court of Assistant Collector Ist Grade, Muktsar for ejectment of two petitioners Balwant Ram alias Balwant Rai and Kulwant Ram. The grounds of ejectment were that the tenants had failed to pay the rent regularly without sufficient cause and they have not cultivated the land in the manner and to the extent customary in the locality. It may be mentioned herein that the two tenant-petitioners had filed applications for the purchase of land in dispute earlier to the ejectment application. I have decided the two Civil Writ Petition Nos. 318 and 361 of 1972 filed by these tenants and allowed their purchase applications vide my judgment dated 29th February, 1980.

(3.) The Assistant Collector dismissed the purchase applications and allowed the application for ejectment and vide his orders dated July 28, 1970, he held that the tenants had failed to pay rent without sufficient cause. However, he did not quantify the rent due. The tenants filed appeals against the orders of their ejectment. The same were dismissed by the Collector on October 26, 1970. Still dissatisfied, the tenant-petitioners filed revision petitions before the Commissioner, Jullundur Division and the same were also dismissed on May 17, 1971. The Financial Commissioner dismissed the revision petitions filed on behalf of the petitioners on 21st October, 1971.