JUDGMENT

S.B. Majmudar, J.-Leave granted in these Special Leave Petitions.

2. By consent of learned advocates of contesting parties the appeals were heard finally and are being disposed of by this judgment.

3. A short question falls for our consideration in these two appeals arising out of a common judgment of Division Bench of the Karnataka High Court in Writ Appeal No.293 of 1991 connected with Writ Appeal No.721 of 1991. The question is whether the common appellant in these appeals who was original petitioner No.2 in these Special Leave Petitions had any locus standi to prefer an application under Rule 60 of the Second Schedule to the Income Tax Act, 1961 for setting aside the sale of immovable property of the defaulter income tax assessee from whom he is alleged to have agreed to purchase the said property and which property was sold in auction by the Income Tax Department in execution of Certificate of Recovery of Income Tax issued against the defaulter, owner of the property.

4. In order to answer this question the backdrop facts may be noted at the outset. One Y.S. Devendra Murthy who was the owner of the property auctioned by the Income Tax Department had committed default in p