Paramjit Singh Patwalia, J. - (1.) THE instant Letter Patent Appeal has been filed against order dated 01.08.2011 passed by the learned Single Judge, whereby the writ petition filed by the Appellants for quashing order dated 21.10.2008 passed by the Collector, Order dated 26.05.2009 passed by the Commissioner and order dated 27.04.2011 passed by the Financial Commissioner, respectively, dismissing the title suit of the Appellants under Section 13A of the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1961 (hereinafter to be referred in short as "the Act"), appeal and revision has been dismissed .
(2.) WE have heard learned Counsel for the Appellants and have gone through the impugned order of learned Single Judge, as well as, the orders passed by the Collector, Commissioner and the Financial Commissioner. In this petition, the Appellants claimed ownership of the land measuring 86 Bighas 5 Biswas situated in village Killazafargarh, Tehsil Julana, District Jind. It is the case of the Appellants that their ancestors were proprietors and permanent residents of the village. It is the case of the Appellants that they are in possession of the land in question since 1927 -28 i.e much prior to 26.01.1950, therefore, in view of the Clause (viii) of Section 2(g)(5) of the Act, the land in question does not vest in the Gram Panchayat and it was wrongly mutated in the name of the Gram Panchayat.
(3.) ALL the revenue authorities after considering the claim of the Appellants in the light of the evidence led by them, as well as, the Gram Panchayat have recorded a finding of fact to the effect that the Appellants had failed to prove their individual cultivating possession on the land in question being co -sharer on or before 26.01.1950. In the jamabandi for the year 1959 -60 (Annexure P/4 in the writ petition), the land is recorded in the ownership column as "Shamlat Panna Sehrawat Hasab Rasad Rakba Khewat", in the cultivation column as "Makbuja Malkan" and the kind of land has been described as "Banjar Kadim" (uncultivable) and "Gair Mumkin Johar" (Pond). Individual possession of the Appellants is not reflected in the revenue record. The mutation was sanctioned in favour of the Gram Panchayat way back in 1964 while title suit was filed in 2006. The entries in the jamabandies after 1964 are continuing in the name of gram panchayat as owner in possession. Taking into consideration the revenue record, the Authorities under the Act have come to the conclusion that the Appellants have failed to prove their ownership with regard to the land in dispute.;