N.L.Untwalia, S.Wasiuddin, J. - (1.) There is a property bearing plot No. 486, sheet No. 122 holding No. 70, circle No. 53, Ward No. 15 in Mohalla Dargah Shah Arzani, Police Station Sultanganj, in the town of Patna. According to the petitioners case, this property belonged to Dr. Abdur Rahman, Dr. Rahman transferred this property to his wife, Bibi Rahmat. She died in the year 1940. On her death, petitioners 1 to 6, who are the sons and daughters of Dr. Rahman and Bibi Rahrnat, inherited this property. They transferred it to petitioner No. 7 by a registered sale deed; executed on the 9 -th of April, 1966.
(2.) The petitioners got a notice dated the 27th/28th of October, 1968, under Section 19 of the Displaced Persons (Compensation and Rehabilitation) Act, 1964 (Act 44 of 1954), hereinafter for the sake of brevity referred to as the Displaced Persons Act, 1954. The notice, a copy of which is Annexure 'A' to the writ application said: Whereas Professor Abdul Ahad son of late Dr. A, Rahman of Mohalla Dargah migrated to Pakistan and whereas his property bearing plot No. 485, Sheet No. 122, H. No. 70 Circle No. ,53 Ward No. 15 in Mohalla Dargah Shah Arzni P.S. Sultanganj.. Patna -6 vested in the Central Government under Section 12 of D. P. (C & R). Act, 1954. And whereas the said property is in unauthorised occupation of 1. Sri Fazlur Rahman, 2. Khalilur Rahman 3. Azizur Rahman, 4. Ahmadi Bibi, 5. Ashgari Begam, 6. Afasari Naza and Sri Ata Warish Warsi, I hereby demand that the possession of the said property be surrendered to the undersigned within 15 days of the receipt of this notice failing which they will be evicted from the premises with, such force as may be necessary for the purpose. They are also directed to file show cause by 24/11/1966 as to why damages for use and occupation of the building in question may not be fixed at Rs. 50/ - p.m. Under Section 19(2) of the D. P. (C & R) Act, 1954 and recovered from them since 15th August, 1947. 2. Upon receipt of the notice, the petitioners showed cause. They claimed that the property was not of Prof. Abdul Ahad. It was the property of Bibi Rahmat, upon whose death it devolved upon petitioners 1 to 6 as her heirs, and, they came in possession of it until they parted with the property in favour of petitioner No. 7 in the year 1966. Certain documents were relied upon by the petitioners before the Managing Officer -cum -Assistant Custodian of Evacuee Property, Patna, who held the enquiry upon the show cause filed then in response to the notice which was, in effect, a notice under Section 19(2)(b) of the displaced Persons Act, 1954. On a consideration of the materials placed before him, he came to the conclusion that the property had been transferred by Bibi. Rahmat by a registeged sale deed executed in the year 1945, as evidenced by deed No. 6355 dated the 9th November, 1945, mentioned in Volume II at page 45 of the register maintained in the Registration Office. He rejected the contention put forward on behalf of the petitioners that the property was not transferred to Prof. Ahad and that it was inherited by petitioners 1 to 6 in the year 1946 on the death of Bibi Rahmat. While doing so, the Managing Officer said: It is correct that this transaction could not be acted upon. To me, it appears that due to the migration of Prof. Abdul Ahad to Pakistan in 1947, he could not take any action for mutation of his property in his favour. Naturally when the real owner was in Pakistan and the property remained with heirs of Bibi Rahmat, it devolved upon the objectors in routine course. Although the language used by the Managing Officer was not very happy, it appears what he meant to say was that the transaction was not acted upon in the sense that the property was not mutated in the name of Prof. Abdul Ahad, because he migrated to Pakistan. The persons, who were left in India, were petitioners 1 to 6, and, in routine course, they came in possession of the property. After the passage which I have quoted above, he has said: Now, it has been established that it was purchased by Prof. Abdul Ahad under a registered deed. He had migrated to Pakistan. The property has rightly been taken over as evacuee property under Old Bihar Ordinance. The objection filed by Sri Fazlur Rahman and others is therefore rejected. A copy of the order dated the 16th December, 1966, of the Managing Officer is Annexure 'B' to this writ application. Against this order, the petitioners filed an appeal under Section 22 of the Displaced Persons Act, 1954 as also a revision under Section 27 of the Administration of Evacuee Property Act, 1950 (Act 31 of 1950), for the sake of brevity hereinafter 'the Evacuee Property Act, 1950. Both the appeal and the revision were dismissed by the Assistant Settlement Commissioner, Lucknow, by his order dated the 10th April, 1967. The Assistant Settlement Commissioner acting as Assistant Custodian General held in the revision that the property was an evacuee property and, consequently, treating the appeal as an appeal from an order under Section 19 of the Displaced Persons Act, 1954 directing them to be evicted from the property, dismissed the appeal. A copy of the appellate order is Annexure 'C' and that of the revision order is Annexure 'D'.
(3.) The matter was taken up in further revision, and it was dismissed by the Settlement Commissioner New Delhi, by his order dated the 10th August, 1967; a copy of which is Annexure 'E' to the writ application.;