Arijit Pasayat, J. - (1.) Challenge in this appeal is to the order passed by learned Single Judge of the Karnataka High Court allowing the revision petition filed under Section 121A of the Karnataka Land Reforms Act, 1961 (in short the Act). The non-official respondent No. 2 C.L. Thammaiah (since dead and substituted by his legal heirs) had filed the revision before the High Court questioning correctness of the order dated 28.2.1990 passed by the Land Reforms Appellate Authority, Mandya, reversing the order passed by the Land Tribunal, Mandya on 21.1.1988. Stand before the High Court was that the claim for grant of occupancy, though initially accepted by the Land Tribunal was erroneously rejected by the Appellate Authority on re-appreciation of the evidence.
(2.) Background facts as noticed by the High Court in a nutshell are as follows: Thammaiah had two brothers, viz. Linge Gowda and Bore Gowda. Bore Gowda is no more and his wife and daughter, Kempamma and Sunandamma are respondents 3 and 4 respectively in this appeal. Admittedly, prior to 1960 there was a partition amongst the 3 brothers, viz. Thammaiah, Linge Gowda and Bore Gowda. The land Survey No. 86/1 of Chikkaballi, Mandya Taluk, along with other lands fell to the share of Bore Gowda. It is not disputed that on 18.11.1960 Bore Gowda mortgaged the land in question in favour of Thammaiah for a period of 10 years. Though the mortgage period was upto 1970, on 27.8.1963 the said Bore Gowda redeemed the mortgage. It is the case of the original tenant Thammaiah that on 30.8.1963 Bore Gowda executed a lease deed in his favour in respect of 14 items of land including the land in question and since then the original tenant and after his death his legal heirs are in possession and enjoyment of the land as the tenants. Appellant-Ramanna, claimed to be the purchaser of the land from Karigowda in the year 1972. According to him, on 30.9.1963 the land in question was sold by Bore Gowda in favour of his father-in-law, Karigowda, and after about 9 years Karigowda sold the land to appellant and handed over possession also. It is also undisputed that, alter the sale transaction in favour of appellant, as the original tenant Thammaiah, resisted appellant from cultivating the land in question on the ground that he is the tenant. Appellant-Ramanna filed a suit in O.S. No. 26 of 1972 and during the pendency of the suit, as the provisions of the Act came to be amended and Civil Courts were barred from deciding the question of tenancy, the said suit was not finalised. As stated earlier, after coming into force the Act as amended by Karnataka Act No. 1 of 1974, the original tenant, Thammaiah, filed application in Form No. 7 claiming occupancy rights in respect of all the 14 items of lands including the land in question. Before the Land Tribunal statements of the parties were recorded and relying upon the agreement deed and the rent receipts the Tribunal proceeded to grant occupancy rights in favour of the original tenant Thammaiah by the order dated 2.8.1975. The said order was challenged by appellant before the High Court by way of a writ petition and the High Court remanded the matter to the Land Tribunal for fresh disposal in accordance with law. After the remand, once again the parties were given opportunity to adduce evidence and, after recording of such fresh evidence, the Tribunal again gave occupancy rights to the said Thammaiah. Aggrieved by the same, appellant approached the Appellate Authority. Even before the Appellate Authority opportunity to lead additional evidence was given to the parties and, after recording such evidence, the Appellate Authority doubting the veracity of the lease deed rejected the claim of the revision petitioners. Hence revision petition was filed before the High Court.
(3.) Stand before the High Court was that the Appellate Authority should have held that Thammaiah was a deemed tenant in terms of Section 4. It was also submitted merely because the alleged lease deed was not a registered document as required under law, the same cannot be treated to be a concocted document. On the basis of the said agreement 14 lands belonging to Boregowda were leased out to the tenant Thammaiah and except that land in dispute the remaining 13 lands which were given to the wife and daughter under a deed of settlement had been granted to the original tenant only on the basis of the said agreement.;