Hegde, J. - (1.) This is an appeal by special leave. It is brought by the legal representatives of one Dewan Bahadur Brij Mohan Zutshi who was the Dewan of Ratlam State from 1912 to 1929. The appellants sued the State of Madhya Pradesh for a declaration of their title to the suit lands. Their suit was decreed by the trial Court but in appeal the same was dismissed and the Judgment of the first appellate Court was affirmed by the High Court.
(2.) The appellants' case (supra) is that the Maharaja of Ratlam announced the grant of suit lands to Zutshi in appreciation of the services rendered by him but no written order was issued. After the death of the previous Maharaja. the succeeding Maharaja after making the necessary enquiries and going through the records ordered on May, 10, 1948: "made inquiries felt that for all practical purposes a grant had been made to the Dewan Bahadur and what was left was the mere formality of a patta which had evidently been held up until certain construction work was complete".
(3.) But before he made this order he had already signed the merger agreement. Curiously enough on May 11, 1948, a day after he made the order earlier referred to, he passed the following order: "My attention has been drawn to the fact that some of the orders which I may have passed after the signing of the covenant on the 22nd April, 1948 might be embarrassing to the successor Government and that they may not feel justified in honouring them. I have therefore authorised Mr. Sharma "(his Dewan) " to review all such orders and to refer them to the Regional Commissioner for approval. Pending such approval all such orders will be held up to enable Mr. Sharma to scrutinize them".;