C.M.LODHA, C.J. - (1.) THIS is a special appeal under Section 18 of the Raj. High Court Ordinance against the judgment by a learned Single Judge of this Court dated September 13. 1979, in S.B. Civil writ Petition No. 672 of 1979, where by the learned Single Judge dismissed the writ petition filed by the appellant against the respondents.
(2.) THE case has a chequered history and this its third inning to this Court. The facts giving rise to the writ petition are as follows : There is a plot of land measuring about 334 Sq Gaz (1 Sq Gaz :4 Sq ft) situated at Badlonwala Choraya, in the town of Bhinmal. A big building on a part of this plot was admittedly constructed by respondents No. 3 Kesbrimal and his son respondent No. 4 Ganpat Lal (who will hereinafter be referred to as respondent) some time in the year 1970 -71. The construction is alleged to be worth Rs. 2 1/2 lakhs by the respondents whereas the estimated value of the construction according to the appellant is about a lakh and a half. It appears that some Bhambhis (members of Scheduled Caste) had taken possession of this land many years ago and built their huts on it. They claimed to be its owners by virtue of their long and uninterrupted possession. The respondents made application before the Municipal Board, Bhinmal, on April 9, 1957, that Bhambhis were taking undue advantage of their possession over the Government land as they were trying to sell it to Mahajans of Bhinmal and get other Government land for their residence. They also stated that they were prepared to purchase this land at the rate of Rs. 2/ -, per square Gaz. About an year after, on March 14, 1958, the respondents themselves obtained two registered sale -deeds in their favour in respect of this land from Bhambhis. One was for 4477 1/2 Sq. Gas for a consideration of Rs. 10,000/ -, and the other for 494 Sq. Gaz for Rs. 1500/ -. Having come to know of this fact, the Municipal Board. Bhinmil, ordered on April 10, 1958, that since the Bhambhis had only a limited right to the land in dispute and the sale by them was unauthorised, proceedings may be taken under Section 130 of the Rajasthan Town Municipalities Act, 1951, for removal of encroachment made by the said respondents on the land in question. Thereupon, the respondents moved an application before the Collector, Jalore, under Section 195 of the Act of 1951 for suspending the execution of the order of the Municipal Board, Bhinmal. But, by his order dated July 8, 1958, the Collector, Jalore, rejected the respondents' application. Against the Collector's order, the respondents filed a revision application before the Government of Rajasthan, which transferred the same to the Commissioner, Jodhpur, who by his order dated February 5, 1959, allowed the revision application holding that the Municipal Board, Bhinmal, was not justified in asking She respondents to remove the building material from the land in question till the Municipality got the question of title to the land in question determined by a competent court. After seven years of the order of the Commissioner, the respondents mida an application to the Municipal Board to grant them permission for raising construction on the land The Board, however, by its order dated January 14, 1966 refused the permission and further directed that the encroachment made by them on the land be removed Aggrieved by the order of the Board, the respondent filed two separate appeals before the Collector, Jalore, one in respect of permission for construction and the other In respect of direction to remove encroachment. The appeal regarding permission for construction was refused by the Collector on October 24,1967, but by a separate order of the same date the Collector stayed the operation of the Board's order directing dispossession of the respondents from the land. Dissatisfied by the Collector's orders dismissing their appeal in respect of permission for construction, the respondents filed appeal before the Government and also a writ petition before 'his Court. The writ petition was registered as No. 104 of 1966. The Government allowed the appeal on November 7, 1966, and consequently, the respondents withdrew the writ petition filed by them on November 11, 1966 The matter did not rest here and again on March 12, 1967, the Municipal Board resolved to serve a notice upon the respondents to vacate the land in question in pursuance of its earlier resolution dated November 4, 1966. The appellant's case is that on March 15, 1967, the Board's order was executed and the building material of the respondents lying on the plot was removed from the site. There appears to be a dispute between the parties whether in fact the respondents were dispossessed from the plot on March 15, 1967. The respondents' case is that they were never dispossessed whereas the appellant's case is that were once dispossessed but again took possession and, therefore, a fresh notice was issued to them on May 6, 1968, but by its resolution dated December 16, 1968, the Board decided to compromise the matter with the respondents by selling away the land to them at the rate of Rs. 7/ -, per square Gaz. The resolution was, however, not given effect to. Meanwhile since the proceedings had been submitted by the Collector under Section 285 of the Rajasthan Municipalities Act, 1959 (which will hereinafter be referred as the Act of 1959) to the Government of Rajasthan, the Minister Incharge, Local Self Government by his order dated August 5, 1970, directed that in order to put an end to the whole dispute, the land may be sold to the respondents at the rate of 21 P per Sq. Gaz. In accordance with the direction of the Minister, Administrator, Municipal Board executed the sale -deed on October 26, 1970. But thereafter when the elected Board came into existence, it filed a writ petition in (his Court against the order of the Minister dated August 5, 1970, which was registered as S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 359 of 1971. The writ petition was decided by a Single Bench on September 14, 1973. The learned Judge held that the Government's order dated August 5, 1970, directing sale of the land to the respondents was not valid. Consequently, he set aside the order of the Minister dated August 5, 1970, and also the tale of the land by the Administrator, Municipal Board, Bhirmal, to the respondents in pursuance thereof. Aggrieved by the decision of the learned Single Judge the respondent filed Special Appeal before a Division Bench of this Court which was registered as D B. Special Appeal No. 261 of 1978, but the Special Appeal was dismissed. The Division Bench, however, directed that the patties we old be relegated to the position as it existed on October 24, 1967, i e. the Collector's order staying the operation of the Bond's resolution dated March 12, 1967, under Section 285(1) of the Act of 1959. When the matter again came up before the Government under Section 285 (2) of the Act of 1959, a compromise petition was submitted before the Minister on behalf of both the parties stating that it had been agreed between the Board and the respondents that the land measuring 5344 Sq. Gaz may be allowed to remain with the respondents provided they paid its price at the rate of Rs. 7/ - per Sq. Gaz, On the basis of the aforesaid compromise the Government by its order dated December 8, 1978, adopted the compromise and set aside the order of the Board directing dispossession of the respondents hum the land is dispute. In other words, the Collector's recommendation dated October 24, 1967, was accepted under Section 285(2) of the Act of 5959. This is how the long drawn battle between she Board and the respondents came to an end. But even then, all was not well with the respondents.
(3.) THE petitioner filed the present writ petition on April 23, 1979, alleging that the order of the State Government dated December 8,1978, (marked Ex 3) is illegal and without jurisdiction in as much as the State Government had no authority to direct sale of the land in favour of the respondents in disregard of the earlier decision of this Court in S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 359 of 1971. It was stated that the petitioner is a voter and a tax payer within the limits of the Municipal Board, Bhinmal, and was prepared to give a bid of Rs. 200/ -, per Sq.Gaz if the land was sold by public auction as required by law.;