MAHARAJADHIRAJ SIR KAMESHWAR SINGH BAHADUR Vs. ARJUN MISSIR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The question involved in these appeals is one of some difficulty and has been referred, to a Full Bench in view of the conflicting opinions expressed in two Division Bench cases of this Court in regard to the construction of Section 16, Bihar Restoration t of Bakasht Lands and Beduction of Arrears of Rent Act (Bihar Act 9 of 1938). Section 16 occurs in chap. 3 which relates to the reduction of arrears of rent and runs as follows: (1) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any law, where any arrears of rent are due to a landlord in respect of a holding other than a holding referred to in Section 15 for any period ending before the first day of Asin, 1345 Fasli corresponding to Asin Badi 1 of 1994 Sambat, the raiyat may make an application to the Collector for the reduction of such arrears. (2) No application under Sub-section (1) shall be entertained unless it is made within a period of one year from the date on which this section comes into force.

(2.) In order to understand the scope of the section it will be necessary to refer to the preceding section Section 15 of the Act--and also to Secs.112 and 112A, Bihar Tenancy Act. Section 112 provides that the Local Government may in certain circumstances invest the revenue officer with the following powers: (a) the power to settle all rents, (b) the power when settling rent to reduce rent, if in the opinion of the officer the maintenance of the existing rent would, on any ground whether specified in the Act or not, be unfair or inequitable. Section H2A empowers the Collector to reduce or settle the money rent of the occupancy holding in the following manner: (a) He may cancel all enhancements of the rent made under Section 29 or under Clauses (a), (b) or (d) of Section 6 Section 30 between 1 January, 1911 and 31 December 1936. (b) He may reduce the rent of any occupancy holdings the rent of which was commuted whether under Section 40 or by agreement between the tenants and the landlord between 1 January 1911 and 3l December, 1936 in the manner specified in the section, (c) He may order the partial or entire remission of the rent for such period as he considers reasonable -- (i) if the soil of the whole or part of the holding has become temporarily or permanently deteriorated without the fault of the raiyat and (ii) if the landlord has failed to carry out the arrangements in respect of irrigation which he is bound to maintain, (d) Ho may reduce the rent to the extent specified in the section, if there has been a fall not due to a temporary cause in the average local price of staple food crops during the currency of the present rent, (e) He may settle a fair rent in such class of cases as may be specified in a notification issued for other sufficient reasons by the Governor in this behalf.

(3.) This section, as will appear from its provisions, relates to the reduction of rent; Secs.15 and 16 of Act 9 of 1938, on the other hand, relate to the reduction of the arrears of rent. Section 15 deals with occupancy holdings only and provides both for cases in which the rent of such holding has been settled or reduced under Secs.112 and 112A as well as those in which rent of such holding has not been settled or reduced under these provisions. Clause (a) of the section states that Where the rent of an occupancy holding has been settled or reduced under Section 112 or Clauses (a), (b), (d) or (e) of Sub-section (1) of Section 112A, Bihar Tenancy Act.... a landlord shall not in any suit or proceeding instituted before or after the date on which the section comes into force be entitled to recover from the raiyat of such holding any arrears of rent in respect of the years covered by such suit or proceeding at a rate in excess of the rent so settled or reduced whether such arrears accrued due before or after such rent was settled or reduced. Clause (b) relates to those cases in which rent has not been reduced under Section 112 or 112A, Bihar Tenancy Act, and provides that in such cases the landlord of the occupancy holding concerned shall not in any suit or proceeding instituted before or after the date on which the section comes into force in respect of the arrears of rent for any period between the first day of Asin 1345 Fs. be entitled to recover from the raiyat any arrears of rent due in respect of such holding at a rate in excess of the rent which would be settled for the holding under Clauses (a), (b) or (d) of Sub-section (1) of. Section 112A, Bihar Tenancy Act, if the raiyat had made an application under any of the aforesaid clauses of Section 112A, Bihar Tenancy Act. Then follows Section 16 which has already been quoted.