MOHD YAQOOB Vs. CUSTODIAN GENERAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS petition must be dismissed on the short ground that the petitioners have no right to maintain it.

(2.) THE case of the petitioners is that land comprised in Khasra Nos. 26, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 and 38 situate in village Dwara, Tehsil Samba was allotted in favour of respondent No. 2 under Cabinet Order No. 578 -C of 1954 dated 7 -5 -1954; that the said respondent did not bring the land under personal cultivation nor even occupied it: that he, therefore forfeited his right, to occupy the same under para 5(1) of the aforesaid cabinet order. Their further case is that in the year 1974 they brought the land under their personal -cultivation and continue to be in possession thereof and are not, liable to be dispossessed therefrom. But, acting "on the concurrent report of the Assistant Custodian, Samba, and Custodian, Jammu that the petitioners were illegal occupiers, the Custodian General respondent No. 1 herein, by his order dated 19 -12 -1975, directed their eviction and -declined to rescind the order upon review applied for by the petitioners. Aggrieved by the order, the petitioners have filed this writ petition and challenged the orders as illegal and unjustifiable.

(3.) APPEARING for the petitioners, Mr. Kotwal argued that having regard to the facts of the case the order was unwarranted by law. In this he relied on paragraph (2) of Cabinet Order 578 -C of 1954 which provides : "the land, of which the right to occupy is forfeited under clause (1), may be re -allotted to other displaced family, which shall not have been settled on land by that time and failing it shall continue with the person, who has been in actual cultivating occupation thereof ; provided" such person is a landless tiller, and otherwise will be let out to a landless tiller, to the extent of the unit admissible."