YUDHVIR SINGH Vs. GRAM PANCHAYAT HALLA AND ANOTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The plaintiff-appellant is in second appeal before this Court having remained unsuccessful in both the courts below. The plaintiff-appellant filed a suit for declaration to the effect that he is owner in possession of the suit land and that the District Development & Panchayat Officer, Gurdaspur had no jurisdiction to decide the matter regarding the suit land. It was pleaded that the father of the plaintiff-appellant namely Puran Chand had filed an injunction suit against the Punjab State regarding khasra no. 19/8 which was decreed in 1983 and the appeal was also dismissed. The Panchayat had filed eviction application pertaining to the suit land, which was also decreed in the year 1999. However, in appeal the case was remanded to the D.D.P.O and which matter is pending. It was pleaded that the father of the plaintiff-appellant, Puran Chand had given more valuable land of abadi to the Gram Panchayat for purposes of a Janj Ghar and in exchange the suit land had become the ownership of Puran Chand, father of the plaintiff-appellant. As regards the exchange the Panchayat had passed a resolution which stood approved by the D.D.P.O as well as the Development Commissioner but had been cancelled by the Under Secretary. Accordingly, Puran Chand had been constrained to file an injunction suit. It was pleaded that Puran Chand had been shown owner in possession of the suit land in the revenue record from 1995 to 1999 and the mutation had also been sanctioned on 25.9.1996. It was further pleaded that the proceedings pending before the D.D.P.O regarding ejectment of the plaintiff-appellant were illegal and not maintainable as the approach of the D.D.P.O had not been fair and proper opportunity was not being granted to the plaintiff-appellant for summoning of the necessary record.

(2.) The suit was contested in terms of a written statement having been filed at the hands of Gram Panchayat of village Halla, Tehsil & District Gurdaspur, wherein a categoric stand was taken that the decree passed by the civil court in favour of the father of the plaintiff-appellant was null and void as the same had been passed in connivance with Sarpanch Dharam Chand. It was stated that the suit property comprised in Killa No.19/8 was actually in the ownership of the Panchayat and the ejectment proceedings against the plaintiff-appellant were pending before the D.D.P.O. Even the stand in the separate written statement filed by the D.D.P.O was on similar lines.

(3.) Upon the pleadings of the parties, following issues were framed by the Trial Court:-