H. N. Seth, J. - (1.) (for self and for V. K. Mehrotra, J.) :-By his order dt. 29-3-1978, a learned single Judge of this Court referred following questions of law for opinion to a larger Bench 1.When a tenure-holder dies after 8th June 1973 and before the publication of notice under Section 9 of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act what should be the date for determining the surplus area of a tenure-holder for the purposes of determining the surplus area in view of Rule 19 of the Act ? 2.Whether Rule 19 read with its sub-clauses 2-4 are within the powers of rule making authority or they are against the provisions of Sections 9 and 10 of the Act which speak about the tenure-holder i. e. the real and living tenure-holder on the date when the notice is to be issued ? 3.Can determination of surplus area of a tenure-holder who is dead on the date of notification under Section 9 of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act be made ignoring the right of the heirs of the deceased tenure-holder on that date ? 4.If the notice under Section 9 has been issued when the tenure-holder was no more in this world can notice under Section 10 (2) of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act be issued without publishing general notice calling upon the heirs of the tenure-holder to submit the statement contemplated by law under Section 9 of the Act ? 5.If the recorded tenure-holder dies soon after the publication of general notice in the official gazette (e. g. before the expiry of 30 days), is it necessary for the Prescribed Authority to reissue notices under Section 9 (1) and (2) of the Act to tenure-holder to comply with the provisions of the Act ? Before dealing with the questions referred to us, it will, we think, be convenient to notice few salient features of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holding Act 1960 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) as amended from time to time. The Act which was passed inter alia to provide for acquisition of land for its equitable distribution and to make the surplus land available for distribution amongst landless agricultural labourers, was enforced in whole of U. P. with effect from 8th June, 1965. Section 5 of the Act lays down that on and from the commencement of the Act no tenure-holder was to be entitled to hold in the aggregate throughout the State of U.P. any land in excess of Ceiling area applicable to him. The Act then went on to state the extent of ceiling area applicable to tenure-holders as also the principles for computing the same. Whereas the mechanism, for determining the ceiling area applicable to a tenure-holder and the surplus land if any held by him on the date of coming into force of the Act, was laid down in Sections 9 to 12 of the Act, that for determining the ceiling area and the surplus land which a tenure-holder happened to hold after the date of commencement of the Act was laid down in Sections 29 and 30 of the Act. Sections 14 and 15 of the Act provided the procedure for acquisition of land declared as surplus and in Chapter IV of the Act provision was made for disposal and settlement of surplus land. Section 44 of the Act enabled the State Government to make rules for carrying out the purposes of the Act including those specified in subsection (2) thereof.
(2.) SUBSEQUENTLY the State Legislature enacted an Act entitled Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act 1972, U. P. Act XVIII of 1973, which was enforced with effect from 8th June, 1973, whereby it made substantial changes in regard to principles that had to be adopted in computing the ceiling area applicable to tenure-holders. Section 5 as substituted by the aforesaid amendment Act provided that on and after the date on which the amendment Act came into force, no tenure holder was to be entitled to hold in aggregate, throughout U. P. any land in excess of the ceiling area applicable to him. The amendment Act also introduced a new sub- section (2) to Sec. 9 of the Act making the mechanism provided in Section 9 (1) of the Act for determination of surplus land applicable also with reference to the date of coming into force of the Amendment Act i.e 8th June, 1973. It further provided that the procedure mentioned in Sections 29 and 30 of the Act was to be followed in relation to tenure-holders who came to hold land in excess of ceiling area applicable to them after 8th of June, 1973. It will thus be seen that U. P. Imposition of Ceiling of Land Holdings Act is an enactment which compels the tenure-holders to part with surplus land held by them and is in that sense an expropriatory legislation. Normally such enactments as has also been done by the Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, make provision specifying the persons who are, as also the property and the circumstances in which it is, to be brought within the purview of the Act. Such enactments also lay down the procedure that has to be adopted for acquiring the specified property. It is now well settled that expropriatory enactments should be strictly construed and interpreted in a way that may be beneficial to the subject. However, the presumption that the expropriatory statutes are to be strictly construed does not apply to its procedural part which has to be interpreted in such a way so as to make the procedure provided in the enactment for acquisition of property effective, vide Gur Sahai v. I. T. Commissioner, AIR 1963 SC 1062 (1064). Accordingly, the provisions contained in the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act which specify the persons who are, as also the circumstances in which their land holding is to be brought within the purview of the Act will have to be strictly construed, but those relating to the procedure to be followed for declaring of a particular land holding as surplus and for its acquisition will have to be interpreted in a way so as to make those provisions really effective. In order to answer the question referred to us we will have to first determine, in the light of aforementioned principles, the persons whose holdings are intended by the Act to be property within its purview.
(3.) THE learned Chief Standing Counsel appearing for the State urged that in view of the provisions contained in Section 5 of the Act which lays down that on and from the commencement of the Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act, 1972, no tenure holder shall be entitled to hold any land in excess of ceiling area applicable to him. It is apparent that the Legislature intended that all tenure-holders who on 8th June, 1973, held land in excess of ceiling area applicable to them as also their land holdings were being brought within the purview of the Act. According to him, all such tenure-holders were deprived of all title and interest in the land held by them in excess of the ceiling area applicable to them (surplus land, which in due course was to be taken over by the State). As the tenure-holders were not entitled to the surplus land held by them on 8th June, 1973, the same could not, in the event of their death be inherited by their heirs. It is the land held by a tenure-holder which fell within the limits of the ceiling area applicable to him, that alone could be inherited by his heirs. In case the land inherited by a tenure-holder after 8th of June, 1973, together with the land already held by him, happened to exceed the ceiling area applicable to him, the surplus land held by him could, as provided in Sections 29 and 30 of the Act be got redetermined and thereafter acquired by the State. According to the learned Standing Counsel merely because a tenure-holder who came within the purview of the Act dies, it did not mean either that he was on 8th June, 1973 entitled to hold land in excess of ceiling area applicable to him or that he could continue to hold the same thereafter. THE legislative intentment being clear, the holding of such a tenure-holder despite his death after 8th June, 1973 continued to be within the purview of the Act. It is true that Section 5 of the Act contains a declaration by the Legislature that on and from the commencement of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act, 1972 no tenure-holder shall be entitled to hold in the aggregate throughout the State land in excess of ceiling area applicable to him. But, the provision made by the Legislature for effectuating the aforesaid declaration is to be found in other sections of the Act. Section 9 (2) of the Act as it stands after the amendment made by U. P. Act XVIII of 1973 reads thus :- "As soon as may be after the enforcement of the U. P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act 1972, the Prescribed Authority shall by general notice call upon every tenure-holder holding land in excess of ceiling area applicable to him on the enforcement of the said Act to submit to him within 30 days of publication of such notice a statement referred to in subsection (1)...............". This sub-section enjoins upon the Prescribed Authority to issue a general notice calling upon the tenure-holders holding land In excess of ceiling area applicable to them on 8th June 1973, to submit a statement of their holdings. Section 10 of the Act then lays down :- "Where a tenure holder fails to submit a statement or submits an incomplete and incorrect statement required to be submitted under Section 9, the Prescribed Authority shall, after making such enquiry as he may consider necessary by himself or by any person subordinate to him cause to be prepared a statement containing such particulars as may be prescribed." Sub-section (2) of Section 10 lays down that after preparing the statement mentioned above, the Prescribed Authority shall cause to be served upon the tenure-holder in such manner as may be prescribed a notice together with a copy of the statement prepared by it calling upon him to show cause within the period specified in the notice why the statement prepared under Section 10 (1) be not taken as correct. Thereafter a declaration as provided in Sections 11 and 12 in respect of surplus land held by the tenure-holder is made and the surplus land is ultimately acquired for being distributed to others under Section 14 of the Act. A close scrutiny of the aforesaid provisions clearly indicates that even though Section 5 of the Act contains a declaration that on or after 8th June 1973 no tenure-holder is to be entitled to hold land in excess of the ceiling area applicable to him, Sections 9 to 12 make it absolutely clear that it is the holding only of such tenure holders who on 8th of June 1973 held land in excess of ceiling area applicable to them and who had been called upon by means of a general notice issued under Sections 9(1)/9(2) to submit a statement of their holding, which could be declared as surplus. These sections do not contemplate a declaration in respect of land-holding belonging to a tenure-holder who has not been, or could not be called upon to submit a statement of his holding under Sections 9(1)/9(2) of the Act as surplus or for its being subsequently acquired under Section 14 of the Act. In a case where a tenure holder who on 8th June 1973, held land in excess of ceiling area applicable to him dies before issue of a general notice under Sec. 9 (2) of the Act, it is clear that he could no more be called upon to submit a statement of his holding as contemplated by Section 9(2) of the Act and consequently in his case, no question of following the procedure for determination of ceiling applicable to him on that date, under Sections 10-12 of the Act arises. The Legislature has not provided any other method for determination of the surplus land of such a tenure-holder, as on 8th of June, 1973. Consequently there is no escape from the position that a tenure-holder who dies after the 8th of June 1973 but before the issue of general notice under Section 9(2) of the Act does not fall within the purview of the U.P. Imposition of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act.;