HARNAM KAUR Vs. HARNEK SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent is directed against the judgment of the learned Single Judge dismissing Civil Writ No. 1767 of 1964, which challenged the order of the Prescribed Authority and the Appellate and Revision Authorities under the Pepsu Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1955 (hereinafter referred to as the Act), granting proprietary rights to the respondents in land measuring 71 Bighas 2 Biswas comprised in Khasra numbers detailed in the impugned order. The facts that are necessary for the disposal of the appeal may briefly be stated as follows :-

(2.) Admittedly, the appellant is a big landowner, i.e., she has got more than 30 standard acres of land. The finding of the Authorities is that respondent Nos. 1 to 4 continued in possession and thus the main contention between the parties, whether there was a relationship of landlord and tenant between the landowner on one side and the four respondents on the other, is finally settled as a finding of fact.

(3.) Before the learned Collector another point taken was that the landlord being a widow, the case was covered by the proviso of sub-section (2) of Section 7-A of the Act and, consequently, the tenants were not entitled to acquire the proprietary rights. This contention was pressed before the learned Single Judge as well as before us. Obviously, this contention is misconceived. Sub-sections (1) and (2) of Section 7-A of the Act are to the following effect :-