Ravi S. Dhawan, J. - (1.) THIS writ petition was originally filed by Rani Brijraj Kunwar, widow of the late Raja Bahadur, Raja Bhagwati Prasad Singh, resident of village Ram Garh, Tappa Daiya, Pargana Khairgarh, Post Office Ram Garh, District Allahabad, seeking a writ of mandamus, in effect, a direction to respondents not to interfere with the petitioner's right of collecting the tahbazari in Koraon market, known as Gola market, and also the other markets of Koraon which had been settled with her by the ad interim Zila Parishad, Allahabad. The petitioner further seeks a writ of mandamus restraining the respondents not to auction the tahbazari of Koraon markets, which is held on the parties (roadside) of the roads of Koraon. Originally the respondents were : (1) The Prabhari Adhikari, Town Area Committee. Koraon. Tehsil Meja, through, the Sub-Divisional Magistrate. Meja. District Allahabad, and (2) the Zila; Parishad, Allahabad, through the District Magistrate. Allahabad. Notice was issued on this writ petition on 20th April, 1982. The prayer for an ad interim relief was initially granted at the time when notice was issued, but subsequently rejected on 27th November, 1991.
(2.) DURING the pendency of the writ petition, two impleadment applications were moved. One on the side of the petitioner, the other by the respondents. Neither objected to the impleadment sought by the respective applicants. Thus, the applications were allowed and the impleadments were permitted. An applicant sought impleadment as a petitioner. This was Kunwar Vikram Singh, the grandson of the petitioner. Rani Brijraj Kunwar. and the son of the late Hon'ble Mr. Justice Chandra Shekhar Pratap Singh, also resident of the same village and tehsil. The petitioners, thus, before and after impleadment are the erstwhile Zamindars of Tappa Daiya. The respondents also applied to implead the Chairman, Town Area Committee, Koraon, Allahabad. The petitioner did not object to this application. This impleadment has, also, been permitted. On facts, whatever be the right of the petitioner. there is no issue between the petitioner and the Town Area Committee that a right, by a contract, as has accrued to the petitioner, from this local body, is a matter of record. On 25th January, 1956 a covenant was signed between the erstwhile Zamindar, the original petitioner, and the Secretary. District Board, Allahabad, which decision the District Board, Allahabad, took at its meeting. This local body passed a Resolution No. 96 dated 8 January, 1956 with intent and purposes to assign the right to collect tahbazari to the petitioner from certain named roads of village Koraon in Tehsil Meja. The District Board took its decision and made an offer to the petitioner of an assignment of the contract. Before the covenant was signed the petitioner accepted the offer, the local body accepted the consideration. The covenant grants the rights to collect tahbazari for ninety years. The duration of these rights, under the contract, are effective from 1 April, 1955 to 31 March. 2045. Certain conditions have been stipulated by the lessor, the then District Board. One of the conditions is that the consideration of the contract would see an Increase of 50% every 30 years. The rate of tahbazari on each item of sale as a consequence of hawking in the bazar, is mentioned in the schedule to the contract. There are 42 items. The covenant also stipulates that as long as the lessee abides by the conditions of contract, the right so conferred will continue with him as also with his heirs. The contract was worked without issue for about 25 years until the lessor seemed to be substituted by a legal successor. This situation was involuntarily to the petitioner. This situation was involuntarily to the petitioner. The District Board found itself replaced when a notification under Section 3 of the U. P. Town Area Act. 1914 (U. P. Act No. 2 of 1914) declared the village Koraon in district Allahabad to be a Town Area and to be known as Town Area, Koraon. This notification was published in the U. P. Extra-ordinary Gazette, dated 10 September, 1981. Simplicitor, the notification as a measure of formality gave the territorial limits of the extent to which the Town Area had been identified towards north, south, east and west.
(3.) THUS, on record there stands a standing agreement between the Zila Parishad (District Board) and the petitioner. But. an overt act was done by the Zila Parishad when the Deputy Executive Officer attempted to cancel the agreement. The petitioner (then Rani Brijraj Rani Kunwar) filed a writ petition. The order of 23 September, 1977 of the Zila Parishad was quashed on the ground that principles of natural justice had not been adhered to before cancelling the contract. The breach of the agreement was certified. This is the Judgment dated 1 May. 1991 of Division Bench, comprised of the Hon'ble S. K. Dhaon and Hon'ble G. D. Dubey.JJ. After five years when Koraon became a Town Area, its Secretary recommended to the Prabhari Adhikari, by a report of 20 March, 1982 that the right to collect tahbazari at the bazar on the roadside parties (sidewalks) of. the village be put to public auction. The order of 20 March, 1982 has been appended as Annexure 2 to the writ petition. The report is in Hindi, the translation of which in English is reproduced below: "The Prabhari Adhikari, Town Area, Koraon.- The auction for the year 1982-83 of the following within the Town Area Koraon is most necessary. 1. Tahbazari Market (All public places, lanes and roads etc. 2. Auction of cattle pound. 3. Auction of cycle and other vehicles etc. 4. Auction of pond. The aforesaid auctions are proposed to strengthen the financial condition of the Town Area. If you agree, please fix the day. date and place so that the general public may be informed by beat of drums. Sd/- Secretary, Town Area. Koraon 20.3.82 Auction be held on 27.3.82. Order of Pargana Adhikari, Meja (in English) Sd/- Pargana Adhikari. Meja 20.3.82" The report does not mention or brief the Prabhari Adhikari that, in reference to the context, on the action contemplated, the rights which were Intended to be assigned by a public auction were already a subject matter of a subsisting contract between Rani Brijraj Kunwar (the then petitioner) and the District Board by an agreement signed on 21 January, 1956. The petitioner represented against the contemplated action of the Town Area to put the collection of tahbazari to public auction during the subsistency of the contract settled with her. The petitioner mentions that on her representation the Town Area Committee stayed the auction on 27 March, 1982 but were threatening to resume the auction proceedings. Thus, the present writ petition was filed.;