AMAR SARJIT SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition for issuance of a writ of certiorari filed on 24th March, 1966, and admitted the following day for hearing before a Division Bench seeks to challenge the order passed by the Financial Commissioner, Punjab, on March 17, 1966 (Annexure D) on the ground that in effect it maintains the integrity of an unappealed order of the Collector of 21st January, 1964, which runs counter to, and has for that reason become a nullity, a Bench decision of Mehar Singh, J. (as the Chief Justice then was) and Khanna, J. in Nemi Chand Jain V. Financial Commissioner, Punjab, delivered on 14th November, 1963, and published in the Law Reports for the first time in 1964 PLR 278. In order to appreciate the question thus formulated in a compendious form, it is necessary to give a background or the legal battle which has waged between the petitioning landlord Amarsurjit Singh and the Revenue authorities with regard to declaration of surplus areas culminating in the impugned order of 17th March, 1966.

(2.) It may be mentioned at the outset that the respondents, other than the State of Punjab, and represented in this Court by Mr. Wasu and Mr. Jinendra Kumar, claim to be in possession as resettled tenants of some areas which have been declared to be surplus and in this assertion which is denied by the petitioner they are supported by the respondent State of Punjab. At best, the question of possession becomes a disputed matter of fact and nothing really turns on it for the decision of this case.

(3.) The petitioner is a big landlord as opposed to a "small landowner" who is defined in the Punjab Security of Land Tenures Act, 1953 (hereinafter called the Act) to be a landowner "whose entire land in the State of Punjab does not exceed the 'permissible area' " which in the case of a person who is not a displaced person like the petitioner, is 30 standard acres. Proceedings were taken for declaration of surplus areas of the land of the petitioner situated in village Malaud Roorian. In the first instance the surplus area declared by the Collector in his order of 8th March, 1960, was 487 standard acres and 2-1/2 units after excluding the permissible area of 30 standard acres and a further area of 6 standard acres and 6 units, which was found to be "held under a garden before the commencement of this Act" on 15th April, 1953. The petitioner preferred an appeal to the Commissioner principally on three grounds. It was contended on behalf of the landowner that before 15th April 1953, when the Act came into force, he had made transfers in favour of his sons and daughter Amar Kuldip Singh, Amar Daljit Singh, Amar Kuldip Kaur and these should have been taken into account in the reckoning of the surplus area. The Commissioner in appeal allowed this plea of the petitioner and the transferee-relations were in consequence asked to make their selections of the permissible areas of 30 standard acres each. The second objection raised by the landlord related to the inclusion of ghair mumkin lands in the surplus area. It was submitted before the Commissioner, who again allowed this plea, that ghair mumkin land should be excluded from the surplus area. The third submission of the petitioner before the Commissioner related to transfers of land between 15th April, 1953 and 30th July, 1958, in favour of landless persons and small landowners. The Commissioner upheld the view of the Collector that these could not be taken into account in computing the surplus area. Dissatisfied with this aspect of the Commissioner's finding, the landlord preferred a revision petition to the Financial Commissioner, who on 1st of June, 1961, remanded the case to the Collector with a direction that these transfers also should be taken account of. During the interregnum as a result of consolidation proceedings it was found that the total area owned by the landlord in village Ramgarh Sardarni had increased by 5 standard acres and 1-1/2 units and the landlord was allowed to retain this area. Taking into account the further allowances which had been permitted by the Commissioner and the Financial Commissioner the surplus area was reduced to 262 standard acres and 11-3/4 units and the Khasra numbers of this area were given in detail in the order of the Collector passed on 21st of January, 1964.