JUDGMENT

BHAGWATI. J. :— These appeals by special leave and writ petitions represent a last but desperate attempt by the class of landholders in Andhra Pradesh to defeat an agrarian reform legislation enacted by the State for the benefit of the weaker sections of the community. It is indeed a matter of regret that a statute intended to strike at concentration of land in the hands of a few and to act as a great equaliser by reducing inequality in holding of land between the haves and the have-nots should have practically remained unimplemented for a period of over seven years. Unfortunately, this is the common fate of much of our social welfare legislation. We can boast of some of the finest legislative measures calculated to ameliorate the socio-economic conditions of the poor and the deprived and to reach social and economic justice to them, but regrettably, a large part of such legislation has remained merely on paper and the benefits of such legislation have not reached the common man to any appreciable extent. The Andhra Pradesh Land Reforms (Ceiling on Agricultural Holdings) Act 1 of 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the Andhra Pradesh Act) which is challenged in the present appeals was enacted by the Andhra Pradesh Legislature on 1st January, 1973. Soon after its enactment, the constitutions validity of the Andhra Pradesh Act was challenged before the Andhra Pradesh High Court on various grounds but a Full Bench of the High Court negatived the challenge and held the Andhra Pradesh Act to be constitutionally valid. Though this judgment was delivered by the High Court as early as 11th April, 1973, no effective steps for implementation of the Andhra Pradesh Act could be taken, since the Andhra Pradesh Act merely remained on the statute book and for some inexplicable reason it was not brought into force until 1st January, 1975. Even after the Andhra Pradesh Act was brought into force, not much enthusiasm was shown by the Government in implementing its provisions and in the meanwhile, it was found necessary to amend the legislation and hence the Andhra Pradesh Land Reforms (Ceiling on Agricultural Holdings) Amendment Act, 1977 was enacted with retrospective effect from 1st January, 1975 and by this amending Act certain amendments were made which included inter alia the introduction of Section 4A. We shall presently refer to the relevant provisions of the amended Andhra Pradesh Act, but before we do so, it is necessary to point out that as soon as the amending Act was passed, another round of litigation was started by the landholders by filing writ petitions in the High Court challenging once again the constitutional validity of the Andhra Pradesh Act. There were several grounds on which the constitutional validity was challenged but the main ground was that by reason of the enactment of the Urban Land (Ceiling & Regulation) Act, 1976 (hereinafter referred to as the Central Act), the Andhra Pradesh Act had become void and inoperative. Certain other question involving the interpretation of the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Act were also raised in some of the writ petitions, but they too need not be mentioned here, because in the course of the hearing we made it clear to the parties that we would examine only the constitutional validity of the Andhra Pradesh Act and other questions could be agitated by the landholders in the appeals filed by them against the orders determining surplus land. It was pointed out to us that some of the landholders had not filed appeals within the prescribed time and grave injustice would therefore result to them if these questions were not decided by us. But the learned Additional Solicitor General appearing on behalf of the State fairly stated before us that if appeals have been filed beyond time or are filed within a month of disposal of these appeals and writ petitions, the delay in filing the appeals would be condoned. Turning to the constitutional challenge, which in those days was required t