SUMANGALI KUMARI Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this writ petition the petitioner prays for quashing of an order dated the 14th October, 1976 of the Additional Collector, Hazaribagh, rejecting her objection filed under section 15(3) of the Bihar Land Reforms (Fixation of Ceiling Area and Acquisition of Surplus Land) Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'), a copy of which has been filed as Annexure '1', as also the order of the Deputy Commissioner, Hazaribagh, dated the 30th November, 1976 (Annexure 2), dismissing her appeal from the order contained in Annexure '1' as not maintainable.

(2.) Land Ceiling Case No. 163 of 1973-74 was initiated against Deonarain Singh, brother of the petitioner. In that proceeding the lands mentioned in Annexure 3 to the writ petition were declared to be surplus lands of Deonarain Singh. The petitioner, who claimed to be an illiterate pardanashin lady having no notice of the case, filed an objection under section 15 (3) of the Act, alleging that 27 acres out of the lands declared to be surplus belonged to her as the same had been gifted to her by a deed of gift dated the 19th June, 1935 and since then she was in possession thereof, and in proof of which she has other relevant documents also. In view of this order that we propose to pass in this case, it is not necessary to give the details of the claim of the petitioner. The petitioner's objection was rejected by the Additional Collector by his order dated the 14th October, 1976, against which, as mentioned above, the petitioner filed an appeal before the Deputy Commissioner, Hazaribagh. In the meantime, by virtue of clause 3 of the Bihar Land Reforms (Fixation of Ceiling Area and Acquisition of Surplus Land) (Amendment) Ordinance, 1976 (Bihar Ordinance No. 219 of 1976). published in the Bihar Gazette Extraordinary, dated the 2nd November, 1976, sub-section (5) of section 15 of the original Act stood deleted, and this amendment came into effect from the date of publication of the Ordinance in the Bihar Gazette, i. e. 2nd November, 1976. The effect of this amendment is that on the publication of the notification under sub-section (1) of section 15 for acquisition of surplus land of a landholder, the right conferred on a person to file claim petition, claiming interest in the land specified in the notification, within thirty days of such publication, was taken away.

(3.) The short and important question that falls for consideration in the instant case is whether after deletion of the original sub-section (3) of section 15 of the Act by Bihar Ordinance No. 219 of 1976, the petitioner's right to file an appeal against an order under section 15 (3) of the Act also disappeared or not. Section 30 of the Act which deals with appeals, reads as follows, after the amendment made by Bihar Land Reforms (Fixation of Ceiling Area and Acquisition of Surplus Land) (Amendment) Act, 1976 (Bihar Act 22 of 1976) :