SHIV BALANK SINGH Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. Asutosh Ranjan Pandey, counsel for the petitioner. No one appears for the private respondents.

(2.) This writ petition arises from a preemption proceeding under Section 16(3) of the Land Ceiling Act and the petitioner before the court is the pre-emptor. The claim of pre-emption was in respect of a piece of land that was transferred by one Ratan Sah (impleaded as respondent no. 5 in the writ petition and after whose death his heirs were substituted in his place) in favour of respondent no. 6 Gulat Yadav under a registered deed of sale executed, as far as back, on 19.6.1967. The petitioner raised the claim of pre-emption in respect of the transferred land on the ground that he was an adjoining raiyat. Apparently, the pre-emptor and the purchaser (respondent no. 6) had a common ancestor and respondent no. 6 resisted his claim on the plea that he was as much an adjoining raiyat of the disputed land.

(3.) In the first round, the D.C.L.R. allowed the claim of pre-emption and directed respondent no. 6 to re-convey the disputed land in favour of the pre-emptor, the petitioner before the court. In appeal the Addl. Collector set aside the order of the D.C.L.R. and remitted the matter to him with a direction to pass a fresh order after holding spot inspection. The D.C.L.R. made an inspection and once again upheld the claim of pre-emption by the petitioners. In appeal the Addl. Collector found and held that the spot inspection was not done properly and the order of the D.C.L.R. also suffered from errors. The Addl. Collector, accordingly, set aside the order passed by the D.C.L.R. and rejected the petitioner's claim of pre-emption. The petitioner then took the matter before the Board of Revenue in revision.