BANWARI LAL Vs. FINANCIAL COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This petition under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution is at the instance of Banwari Lal, a landowner in village Daban Kakarian, Tehsil Fazilka, directed against the order of the Assistant Collector passed on 10th January, 1961 granting the right of purchase to second respondent Main Raj of land comprised in Khasra No. 625 on payment of Rs. 5520.27 payable in six monthly instalments of Rs. 552.03 each.

(2.) This order (Annexure 'A') of the Assistant Collector has been affirmed in appeal by the Collector in his order (Annexure 'B') dated 21st March 1961. The Additional Commissioner dismissed the revision petition of Banwari Lal on 24th May 1962 vide Annexure 'C' and the further petition for revision before the Financial Commissioner preferred by the petitioner met with the same fate. The order of the Financial Commissioner was passed on 12th December 1962 (Annexure 'D'). Aggrieved by these orders the petitioner Banwari Lal has sought the intervention of this Court in certiorari proceedings.

(3.) The case of the petitioner all along has been that he had included Khasra No. 625 in the reserved area and consequently it could not be made a subject-matter of purchase by a tenant. According to the finding of the Assistant Collector, Khasra No. 625 measuring 27 Bighas and 2 Biswas has been in cultivation both of the petitioner and the second respondent in equal portions. It has not been denied that the petitioner has actually reserved Khasra No. 625 and in fact this is proved by Exhibit P. 9, which is a daily diary of the Patwari. Under sub-section (1) of section 5 of the Punjab Security of Land Tenures Act, 1953, hereinafter called the Act :-