THAKAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a writ petition which has been referred to a larger Bench by my learned brother far determination of the validity of certain provisions of the East Punjab Holdings (Consolidation and Prevention of Fragmentation) Second Amendment and Validation Act, 1962, Act 25 of 1962.

(2.) BEFORE the amending Act was passed Section 21(4) of the Act read:

(3.) THE necessity for amending the Act arose out of the decision of the Supreme Court in Roop Chand v. The State of Punjab and Anr., 1963 P.L.R. 576, in a petition filed in the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Constitution. The decision mainly turned on the question whether an officer to whom the powers of the State had been delegated under Section 21(4) of the Act could be regarded as an officer in the phrase "any order passed by any officer under this Act" appearing in Section 42. It was held by the majority that when Government delegates its power under the provisions of the East Punjab Holdings (Consolidation and Prevention of Fragmentation) Act to an officer, and that officer in pursuance to such delegation hears an appeal and makes an order, the order of the officer is the order of the Government and the Government cannot interfere with it under Section 42 of the Act.