S BALWANT SINGH CHOPRA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This judgment will dispose of four writ petitions, Balwant Singh and others V. Union of India and others (C.W. No. 2775 of 1966), Sher Singh and others V. Financial Commissioner, Planning, Punjab and others (C.W. No. 693 of 1966), Hardev Singh V. Financial Commissioner, Planning, Punjab and others (C.W. 1284 of 1966) and Harcharan Singh V. Financial Commissioner, Planning, Punjab and others (C.W. No. 1285 of 1966), as a common question of law arises in all these writ petitions. That common question of law is whether after the reorganisation of the State of Punjab, the landowners owning land in the States of Punjab and Haryana can claim that they should be allowed the permissible area in both the States separately and the order declaring the area as surplus prior, to 1st of November, 1966, but which has not been utilised so far, should be deemed to have no effect.

(2.) The facts of the case of Balwant Singh and others V. Union of India and others , are that Balwant Singh who is a displaced person had been allotted 37 standard acres and 11-1/2 units of land in village Dhab Kharial, tehsil Fazilka, district Ferozepur (State of Punjab), 6 standard acres and 2 units in village Mohamdpira, tehsil Fazilka, district Ferozepur (State of Punjab) and 31 standard acres and 8-3/4 units in village Samani, tehsil and district Karnal (State of Haryana) - in lieu of the land left in Pakistan. Out of 37 standard acres and 11-1/2 units of land in village Dhab Kharial, 3 standard acres were allotted to Shrimati Hakim Devi (mother of Balwant Singh, petitioner) who had the mortgagee rights over the said land which have been shown in the Sanad as such. Balwant Singh also alleged that he had sold 6 standard acres and 2 units of land in village Mohmadpira in 1957 and that he had transferred the entire area of land in village Dhab Kharial in favour of his wife Shrimati Bimla Rani and his son Ranbir Singh in the year 1957 but all these transfers were ignored by the authorities. Shrimati Bimla Rani and Ranbir Singh are petitioners 2 and 3 in the petition. Balwant Singh petitioner was entitled to 50 standard acres as his permissible area. The Special Collector, Punjab, by his order dated 8th of November, 1960, declared 29 standard acres and 2-1/2 units or 40.70 ordinary acres as surplus. Balwant Singh, petitioner, had selected 31 standard acres and 9 units of land in village Samani as his permissible area and did not reserve any area out of the land in village Dhab Kharial or Mohmadpira on the ground that he had transferred these lands. The Special Collector, however, reserved for him 18 standard acres and 7 units or 26.63 ordinary acres from his holding in village Dhab Kharial in order to make up permissible area to 50 standard acres. The appeal of the petitioners and Hakim Devi against the order of the Special Collector was dismissed by the Commissioner, Jullundur Division, on 5th of January, 1965, on the ground of being badly time-barred by 1441 days. The petitioners and Hakim Devi, however, filed a revision which was dismissed by the learned Financial Commissioner, Planning, Punjab, by his order dated 19th February, 1965. The petitioners then filed the present writ petition in this Court on 21st of December, 1966, in which they claimed that Balwant Singh was entitled to 50 standard acres each in the State of Punjab and the State of Haryana after reorganisation and no part of his lands could be declared surplus.

(3.) The learned counsel for the petitioners has relied on the definition of "small landowner" and "permissible area" in section 2(2) and (3) of the Punjab Security of Land Tenures Act, 1953 (hereinafter called the Act) which are reproduced hereunder :-