STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH Vs. BUDHIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Regular Second Appeal is directed against the judgment and decree dated 7.11.2001 rendered by the learned District Judge, Sirmaur District at Nahan in Civil Appeal No.39 -CA/ 13 of 2001.

(2.) MATERIAL facts necessary for the adjudication of this Regular Second Appeal are that the respondents - plaintiffs (hereinafter referred to as ˜plaintiffs for convenience sake) instituted a suit against the appellants -defendants (hereinafter referred to as defendants for convenience sake) for declaration. According to them, they had been coming in possession of the suit land, detailed in the plaint, since 1998 -1999 B.K. Sambwat. Their possession was earlier duly recorded in revenue records as open, hostile, continuous, uninterrupted without hindrance of any person and to the knowledge of the defendants. According to them, they have perfected their title by way of adverse possession over the suit land. Defendant No.2, i.e. Divisional Forest Officer, Forest Division, Renukaji, District Sirmaur in collusion with defendant No.1, i.e. Collector, Sirmaur District has got the names of the plaintiffs deleted from the column of kaifiyat No.19 of Khasra Girdawari vide order dated 20.1.1984 passed by the Collector, Sirmaur District at Nahan without the knowledge of the plaintiffs in an illegal manner and incorporated illegal entries in the copy of jamabandi for the year 1986 -87. According to them, the names of the plaintiffs are recorded in the column of possession upto 1984. The plaintiffs have served notice under section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure upon the defendants.

(3.) MR . R.P. Singh, learned Assistant Advocate General has strenuously argued that both the courts below have misread and mis -appreciated the oral as well as documentary evidence. According to him, there is no illegality whereby the revenue entries have been altered on the basis of orders passed by the Collector, Sirmaur District on 20.1.1984. He then argued that the plaintiffs have failed to prove the ingredients of adverse possession.