Ashok Bhushan, J. - (1.) -Heard counsel for the petitioner.
(2.) BY this writ petition, the petitioner has prayed for quashing the order dated 16th July, 2003, passed by Deputy Director of Consolidation and the order dated 7th April, 2001, passed by Settlement Officer of Consolidation. Brief facts of the case as stated in the writ petition are : petitioner was allotted chak in consolidation proceedings held in the village. Petitioner filed a belated objection before the Consolidation Officer praying that he be allotted chak on plot No. 4389 and others plots which were bachat land of Gaon Sabha. The Consolidation Officer allowed the objection of the petitioner vide order dated 9th August, 1995 by which petitioner was given chak on bachat land of Gaon Sabha and plot No. 4389. An appeal was filed by respondent No. 5 against the aforesaid order of Consolidation Officer. In the appeal it was prayed that appellant be given chak on his original holding. Objection was filed in the appeal by the petitioner that the appeal filed by the appellant is not maintainable. It was stated that notification under Section 52 of U. P. Consolidation of Holdings Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) was already made on 7th March, 1998 and the appeal which was filed after de-notification is not maintainable. It was further sated that appellant is not aggrieved person and has no right to file an appeal. The Settlement Officer of Consolidation vide order dated 7th April, 2002, condoned the delay in filing the appeal and held the appeal to be maintainable. The Settlement Officer of Consolidation fixed date for hearing of appeal on merits. Against the order dated 7th April, 2001, revision was filed by the petitioner which has been rejected by the order of Deputy Director of Consolidation dated 16th July, 2003. Present writ petition has been filed challenging the aforesaid orders of Settlement Officer of Consolidation and Deputy Director of Consolidation. The counsel for the petitioner challenging the aforesaid orders contended that appeal filed by respondent No. 5 was not maintainable. He placed reliance on judgments of this Court in Bala Prasad v. District Deputy Director of Consolidation, Banda and others, 2003 (94) RD 405 and Smt. Sukhjinder Jeet Kaur and others v. Deputy Director of Consolidation/ Additional Collector, Rampur and others, 2003 (2) AWC 943 : 2003 (94) RD 79. It was further contended that village having been notified under Section 52 of the Act appeal was not maintainable.
(3.) I have considered the submissions and perused the record. The first submission of counsel for the petitioner is with regard to locus of respondent No. 5 to file an appeal. U. P. Consolidation of Holdings Act is a Special Act giving right to tenure holders of village at various stages to file objection, appeal and revision. Right of objection is given to a person to whom notice under Section 9 (1) of the Act is given or any other person interested. Section 11 of the Act as amended upto date provides that any party to the proceedings under Section 9A, aggrieved by an order of the Assistant Consolidation Officer or Consolidation Officer, may file an appeal. Sections 9 and 11 of Act are quoted below : "9. Issue of extracts from records and statements and publication of records mentioned in Sections 8 and 8A and the issue of notices for inviting objections.-(1) Upon the preparation of the records and the statements mentioned in Sections 8 and 8A, the Assistant Consolidation Officer shall : (a) ........................................ ........................................ ........................................ ........................................ ........................................ ........................................ (b) publish in the unit the current khasra and the current annual register, the khasra chakbandi, the Statement of Principles prepared under Section 8A, and any other records that may be prescribed to show, inter alia, the particulars referred to in clause (a). (2) Any person to whom a notice under sub-section (1) has been sent, or any other person interested may, within 21 days of the receipt of notice, or of the publication under sub-section (1), as the case may be, file, before the Assistant Consolidation Officer, objection in respect thereof disputing the correctness or nature of the entries in the records or in the extracts furnished therefrom, or in the Statement of Principles, or the need for partition. 11. Appeals.-(1) Any party to the proceedings under Section 9A, aggrieved by an order of the Assistant Consolidation Officer or the Consolidation Officer under that section, may within 21 days of the date of the order, file an appeal before the Settlement Officer, Consolidation who shall after affording opportunity of being heard to the parties concerned, give his decision thereon which, except as otherwise provided by or under this Act, shall be final and not be questioned in any court of law. (2) The Settlement Officer of Consolidation, hearing an appeal under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be a court of competent jurisdiction, anything to the contrary contained in any law for the time being in force notwithstanding." ;