(1.) ONE Dhanno Devi widow of Shri Duli Chand was allotted land measuring 17 standard acres on 13.12.1956 under the provisions of Displaced Persons (Compensation & Rehabilitation) Act, 1954 (for short "1954 Act) in lieu of the land left in Pakistan. This allotment, however, was cancelled on 23.10.1970 on the ground that there is no such allottee and no one had made any effort to cultivate the land. 25 canals of land situated in village Lohgarh, Tehsil Nakodar, District Jalandhar was part of the cancelled evacuee surplus agricultural land allotted in favour of Dhanno Devi. As per the petitioner, the land so retrieved was required to be sold by public auction in terms of Rule 6(2)(i) of the Punjab Package Deal Properties (Disposal) Rules, 1976 (for short "Disposal Rules").
(2.) THE petitioner makes a grievance that instead of putting this land to open auction, the same was put on sale by way of restricted auction on 20.7.1984. The petitioner would term this as an act of fraud, as according to him, only 2-3 persons participated in this auction and secured sale in their favour. The petitioner filed objections against this auction before the Sales Commissioner on the ground that he was in continuous possession of the suit land. His plea was that there is clear bar under the statutory provisions for putting this land to restricted auction.
(3.) THE petitioner also filed an appeal against the order passed by the Sales Commissioner, which was rejected on 8.5.1986. The petitioner then filed a revision against this order before Commissioner, Jalandhar Division, Jalandhar which was accepted on 6.6.1990. Commissioner, Jalandhar remanded the case back to the Sales Commissioner for deciding it afresh as according to him the suit land could not have been put to restricted auction.