JUDGMENT

CHANDRACHUD, J.:—Certain lands situated in Usmanpur and Dariyabad in the district of Allahabad are in the possession of the appellant, some as a Bhumidhar, some as a Sirdar and some as a hereditary tenant. The lands abut on the Jamuna river and are submerged by the river water when the river is in flood. When the flood recedes large quantities of stand, gravel, boulders and bajris are deposited on the surface of the lands. The appellant lays claim to the deposits left behind by fluvial action of the river contending that since he is the owner of the lands or is otherwise entitled to an unrestricted user of the lands, he would be entitled to appropriate the deposits to the exclusion of all others.

2. The Mines and Minerals Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh, took steps in about 1970 to sell by auction the right to remove the sand, gravel and bajris deposited on the appellant s lands. On October 13, 1970 the appellant made an application to the Officer-in-charge, Mines, Allahabad, objecting to the proposed auction on the ground that the Government had no right to deal with this property in a manner detrimental to his title. On February 18, 1971 the Department of Mines pa