Mahesh Chandra, J. - (1.) THIS is an application of the Defendant Appellants praying that the appeal along with the suit be ordered to have abated. Suit No. 690 of 1956 was filed in the court of the City Munsif Meerut for recovery of possession of plot No. 5199 (old) corresponding to plot No. 4635 (new), area 1 Bigha 2 Biswas, of Kothi Babbu wali in the town of Meerut and for recovery of damages for use and occupation and also for rendition of accounts. The land belonged to Lala Nanak Chand Trust. The management committee of the trust leased out the plot to Shri Bateshwar Dayal, for a period of 30 years, commencing from 1 -7 -1926, under a deed dated 23 -6 -1926 for the purpose of planting a grove, erecting buildings, digging wells etc. According to the Plaintiff Respondents the period expired, but Sri Bateshwar Dayal did not surrender the land and failed to abide by the terms of the lease inasmuch as he neither erected any building nor dug a well, nor planted a grove and allowed it to be used as a tonga and lorry stand without obtaining the lessor's consent and has been earning huge profits of the same inspite of the fact that he was a member of the Trust until 10 -6 -1926. It was further alleged that the period of the lease expired and the Respondent did not surrender the land. It was also alleged that Sri Bateshwar Dayal had made undue profit from the Trust Property inspite of being a member of the Trust Committee and was consequently liable to render accounts of profits earned by him during the period of his membership.
(2.) THE suit was contested by the Appellants and was dismissed by the trial court on 24 -10 -1958. On appeal the learned Civil Judge Meerut decreed the suit for ejectment of the Appellants and for damages for use and occupation at the rate of Rs. 12.50 per annum from 1 -7 -1956 onwards till the date of actual possession. The first appellate court dismissed the rest of the claim. In this second appeal, execution of the decree and the delivery of possession had been stayed till the disposal of the appeal.
(3.) THE Appellants have filed this application for abatement of both the suit and the appeal on the ground that under UP Urban Areas ZA and LR Act 1956, which came into force with effect from 12 -3 -1957, alleging that the land in dispute had been demarcated as an agricultural area and shown as grove in U.A. from No. 3 prepared under the provisions of the Act and that a notification dated 16 -6 -1964 had been published in the UP Gazette Under Section 8 of the Act vesting the area in the State of UP. The Appellants alleged that after the publication of the aforesaid notification all interest and title of the Plaintiff vested in the State of UP and the Trust ceased to have been the power of the land in suit and the Appellants became Bhumidhars Under Section 17 of the Act. They further alleged that they had deposited ten times of the annual rent in the sub treasury Meerut on 10 -5 -1965 for the issue of the Bhumidhari Sanad and acquired the rights of a Bhumidhar. According to them because of the Act and the rules framed thereunder the suit and the appeal both abated.;