Judgment

SUBBA RAO, J. : This appeal by special leave is directed against the order of the Additional Deputy Custodian-General of Evacuee Property, New Delhi, dated September 29, 1954, setting aside the order dated August 25, 1952, of the Additional Custodian, Rural, Jullundur, confirming that of the Deputy Commissioner, Ambala, dated May 12, 1951.

2. The appellant belongs to a group of evacuees which may for convenience be described as Dhawan Group. Diwan Chaman Lal, respondent No. 1, was a displaced person from West Pakistan where he owned considerable properties. On September 1, 1949, in lieu of land left behind in Pakistan, he was allotted 152.9 acres of land in village Kharwan in Tehsil Jagadhri, District Ambala. The appellant and his group also owned large extends of properties in West Pakistan. Each one of that group was allotted different extends of land in the same village. Before possession was taken by the allottees, two persons, namely, Hari Chand & Khilla Ram, filed applications dated November 14, 1949, and November 11, 1949, respectively for re-allotment on the ground that the soil of the village was not of uniform quality and the allotment on the basis of blocks was not justified. The Additional Deputy Commissioner, Ambala, recommended the splitting of the land into four blocks and the said recommendation was accepted by the Director-General. Rural Rehabilitation, by his order dated December 2, 1949, Thereupon the village was divided into four blocks and was reallotted. On account of the re-allotment, the 1st respondent could not get his entire allotment in village Kharwan in one block and he was given instead land in different blocks and different villages. Aggrieved by this order, the first respondent filed a review application before the Deputy Commissioner, Ambala, on September 27, 1950, praying for the restoration of his original allotment made on September 1, 1949. The Deputy Commissioner, Ambala, rejected that application on May 12, 1951. Against that order the first respondent preferred a revision to the Additional Custodian, who dismissed the same on August 25, 1952. Against that order of dismissal, the first respondent filed a revision to the Custodian-General on October 30, 1952. To that revision only the Custodian was made party; but the appellant and the members of his group were subsequently made parties by an order of the Deputy Custodian-General dated August 25, 1953. Thereafter notices were issued to them. The appellant and others on their being made parties raised various contentions. The Deputy Custodian-General cancelled the allotment made in favour of the Dhawan Group in respect of the excess area allotted to them and directed the land obtained by means of this cancellation to be utilised for the consolidation of the allotment of the first respondent in village Kharwan. He also gave further consequential directions. The present appeal is preferred by Purshotam Lal Dhawan, a member of the Dhawan Group, against the said order.

3. Learned counsel for the appellant raised before us the following two points: (1) The revision to the Deputy Custodian-General was barred by time. (2) On the date when the allotment made to the appellant was cancelled, the Deputy Custodian-General had no power to cancel the allotment.

4. To appreciate the first contention some relevant dates may be given. The order of the Additional Custodian was passed on August 25, 1952. The said order was communicated to the first respondent on September 11, 1952. The revision was filed on October 10, 1952. On the date of the filing of the revision only the Deputy Custodian was made a party but later on the Dhawan Group was impleaded in the revision in October, 1953. No application for excusing delay in preferring the revision against the said persons was made. It was contended before the Deputy Custodian-General that the revision petition was barred by time against the Dhawan Group but the Deputy Custodian-General rejected the argument