MUNESHWAR LAL Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This application by Muneshwar Lal and eight others has been filed under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India against the order dated 5th of April, 1976 (Annexure 7), the order dated 21st of August, 1976 (Annexure 8) and the order dated 11th of January, 1977 (Annexure 9) respectively passed by the Additional Collector, Rohtas (respondent No. 4) Commissioner, Patna Division (respondent No. 3) and the Additional Member, Board of Revenue, Bihar, Patna (respondent No. 2) holding, under the Bihar Land Reforms (Fixation of Ceiling Area and Acquisition of Surplus Land) Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) that the nine petitioners are not the landholders and, therefore, they are not entitled to any unit of land ; however, holding that Sri Murti Mahabir Jee Bhagawan, respondent No. 5, was the landholder and the said deity was entitled to one unit of land out of the total land measuring 60.92 acres in village Singhasarai in the district of Rohtas. In the application the petitioners have, therefore, prayed for quashing the orders contained in Annexure 7, 8 and 9 and for direction to the respondents 2, 3 and 4 to forbear from giving effect to those orders.

(2.) In order to appreciate the points involved in this application, it will be necessary to state some relevant facts. As stated by the petitioners in their application and as stated on behalf of respondent Nos. 1 to 4 in the counter-affidavit which was filed on their behalf on 4th July, 1977, the petitioners are the descendants from one common ancestor Munshi Dip Narain Lai of village Keshopur which was the ancestral place of the petitioners. The petitioners have given the genealogy of their family which is to this effect: [window.print()]

(3.) The proceedings under the Act relates to 60.92 acres of land as mentioned earlier. In the cadastral survey records of rights it was recorded as Bakasht Thickhead in the name of Dip Narain Lal and Ors., the common ancestors of the petitioners. According to the petitioners, the land remained throughout in the possession of the descendants of Dip Narain Lal. The ancestors of the petitioners had installed an idol of Mahabir Jee (respondent No. 5) inside their house and used to be worshipped as a family deity, Vishwanath Sahay and Mishri Lal, the two sons of Dip Narain Lai who are now dead, had executed a registered deed dated 10th of June, 1937. The nomenclature given to the said deed was "Deed of Waqfnama". The deed was written in Urdu script which enclosed a copy of the said translation with their application which is marked as Annexure 1. The subject-matter of the said deed is land measuring 60.92 acres situated in the village mentioned above, as well as one house in the. district of Varanasi in which the said deity, respondent No. 5 is installed, one of the terms mentioned in the deed is that Rs. 12.00 per annum would be spent for Rag Bhog, sewa and puja of respondent No. 5, and the rest of the income from the subject-matter of the deed would be utilised by the members of the family and their descendants. The petitioners amongst others, sometime in 1961, instituted partition No. 96 of 1961 impleading respondent No. 5, as one of the defendants. Later, a compromise petition was filed by the parties and a compromise was recorded and a compromise decree dated 3rd of May, 1961 was passed partitioning the said properties. One of the terms of the compromise was that Rs. 12.00 per annum would be spent over the Rag Bhog and Sewa Puja of respondent No. 5 as mentioned in Annexure 1. A copy of the final decree in the said partition suit is annexed and marked as Annexure 2. Later on, in revisional survey the entire land was recorded in the name of petitioners 1 to 5, being one part of the descendants of the late Vishwanath Sahay, and petitioners 6 and 7 being the descendants of late Mishri Lai as the other part, each part bearing equal share and the petitioners were mentioned as Shebait of respondent No. 5. An extract of the entry in revisional survey has been marked as Annexure 3. In trust case No. 531 of 1956-57 the Deputy Collector, Land Revenue, Bhabhua, by his order under the Bihar Land Reforms Act, 1950, dated 17-10-73 (Annexure 4) held inter alia that the deed (Annexure 1) was by way of family arrangement.