Judgement

K. N. WANCHOO, J. : These sixty-nine petitions under Art. 32 of the Constitution by various land-owners in the former State of Ajmer attack the validity of the Ajmer Abolition of Intermediaries and Land Reforms Act, (Ajmer III of 1955) (hereinafter called the Act). The petitions disclose a large number of grounds on which the validity of the Act is impugned; but learned counsel, Mr. Achhru Ram and Mr. B. D. Sharma, appearing for various petitioners, have confined their arguments only to certain grounds raised in the petitions. We propose, therefore, to consider only the grounds urged before us.

2. The Act was passed by the Ajmer Legislative Assembly and received the assent of the President on 29-5-1955. Section 4 of the Act provided for vesting of all estates held by intermediaries, as defined in the Act, in the State Government from a date to be notified. The Act came into force on 23-6-1955, and 1-8-1952, was notified as the date on which the estates held by intermediaries would vest in the State Government. The present petitions followed on the fixing of this date.

3. It is not disputed that the Act is protected under Art. 31-A (1) (a) of the Constitution inasmuch as it i