R.A.MEHTA - (1.) The question involved in this petition is whether the 22 transactions of sale of plots of land admeasuring 8550.51 sq. mts. and the four transactions of gift of eight plots admeasuring 4900.63 sq.mts. are bonafide transaction under registered deed for valuable consideration under section 4 (4) of the Urban Land (Ceiling & Regulation) Act 1976 (hereinafter referred to as the Act). Section 3 provides that no person shall be entitled to hold any vacant land in excess of the ceiling limit. The ceiling limit is prescribed by section 4 and section 4(4) provides that for the purpose of calculating the extent of vacant land held by such person the land so transferred shall be taken into account. The said provision reads as follows : (4)(a) : In any State to which this Act applies in the first instance if on or after the 17th day of February 1975 but before the appointed day any person has made any transfer by way of sale mortgage gift lease or otherwise (other than a bonafide sale under a registered deed for valuable consideration) of any vacant land hold by him and situated in such State to any other person whether or not for consideration then for the purposes of calculating the extent of vacant land held by such person the land so transferred shall be taken into account without prejudice to the rights or interests of the transferee in the land so transferred : Provided that the excess vacant land to be surrendered by such person under this chapter shall be selected only out of the vacant land held by him after such transfer. (b) : For the purpose of Cl.(a) the burden of proving any sale to be a bonafide one shall be on the testator. Explanation: Where in any State aforesaid there was or is in force any law prohibiting transfer of urban property in that State except under the circumstances if any specified therein then for the purposes of this sub-section any transfer by way of sale of such property being vacant land made by any person under a registered deed for valuable consideration in accordance with the provisions of such law or in pursuance of any sanction or permission granted under such law shall be a bonafide sale.
(2.) The competent Authority by its order dated August 2 1979 in para 6 of his order held that these transactions were saved by the provisions of section 4 (4) (a) as bonafide transactions observing that these transactions were for valuable consideration and that the land holder had no business relations with the purchasers and the gifts were also by registered deeds and they were in favour of near relatives out of natural affection and they were also hold to be bonafide All these transactions are during the specified period from February 17 1975 to January 20 1976 In fact except three transactions of sale dated September 15 1975 all other transactions of sale are of January 10 1976 or January 16 1976 and all of them are executed and registered at Bombay. The four gift deeds are of October and November 1975 Statement A and B are in respect of the sale deeds and the gift deeds respectively. The Sale deeds are in respect of plots in survey no - 128/1 of Jamnagar and the gin deeds are in respect of 10 plots of survey no. 243 of Jamnagar. From those statement the following summary can be looked at: JUDGEMENT_903_GCD1_1994Html1.htm
(3.) The Competent Authority after excluding these lands held that the petitioners holding of vacant land in the urban agglomeration was 1956.76 sq.mts. and it was loss than the ceiling limit of 2000 sq.mts. for Jamnagar urban agglomeration and therefore the proceedings were closed.;