Judgment

SEN. J:- In this batch of writ petitions, the main question that falls for determination, is whether the provisions of Chapter IIB of the West Bengal Land Reforms -Act, 1955 (Act X of 1956) inserted by the West Bengal Land Reforms (Amendment) Act, 1971 (Presidents Act III of 1971), and replaced by the West Bengal Land Reforms (Amendment) Act, 1972 (Act XII of l972) with retrospective effect from February 12, 1971, which provide for a fixation of ceiling on agricultural holdings and for matters ancillary thereto, are violative of the second provision to Art. 31A (1) of the Constitution.

2. The challenge in particular is to the validity of the definition of the term familv contained in S. 14K (c), the fixation of ceiling limits of a raiyat under S. 14M (1), the provision for lands held by the members of a family being clubbed under S. 14M (2), the avoidance of transfers by S. 14P, the fixation of a ceiling limit on orchards under S.140 (2), the vesting of surplus land in the State under S 14S(1), the penal consequences for failure to file a return provided for in Section 14T (4), the imposition of a restriction on transfers under S. 14U and the absence of a provision for payment of compensation or acquisition of homestead under S. 14V.

3. It would be convenient to refer, in the first place, to the legislative changes brought about in the State of West Bengal in furtherance of the Directive Principles enshrined in Art. 39 (b). Agrarian reform was undertaken in two stages. The first was the stage of abolition of the zamindari system. The West Bengal Estates Acquisition Act, 1953 (Act I of 1954) which received the assent of the President on February 12, 1954, and has been placed in the Ninth Schedule as item No. 59, was an Act to provide for the acquisition of estates, of rights of intermediaries therein and of certain rights of raiyats and underraiyats. By virtue of notification under S. 4 issued on April 14, 1955 declaring April 15, 1955 to be the date of vesting, the estates and the rights of intermediaries therein, vested in the State free from all encumbrances from the date. Section 5 provided that on and from the date of vesting, the estates and the rights of intermediaries in the estates shall vest in the State free from all encumbrances. Section 6 (1) provided that, notwithstanding anything contained in Ss. 4 and 5, an intermediary shall, subject to certain conditions, be entitled to retain (a) land cormprised in homesteads, (c) non-agricultural land in his khas possession not exceeding 15 acres in area, and excluding any land retained under cl.(a), (d) agricultural land in his khas possession not exceeding, twenty-five acres in area, as may be chosen by him, (e) tank fisheries, and (f) land comprised in tea gardens or orchards or land used for the purpose of livestock breeding, poultry farming or dairy etc. Sub-section (2) thereof provided that, an intermediary who was entitled to retain possession of any land under sub-s. (1), shall be deemed to hold such land directly under the State from the date of vesting as a tenant.

4. Chapter VI of the West Bengal Estates Acquisition Act, 1953, which provided for acquisition of interest of raiyats and under-raiyats,however, did not come into force on the publication of the notification under S. 4 for the acquisition of estates and the rights of the intermediaries therein with effect from April 15, 1955. That was because S. 49 provided that this Chapter was to come into force on such date as the Government may by notification appoint. By S. 52 it was provided that on the issue of a notification under S. 49, the provisions of Chapters II, III, V and VII were to apply, with such modification as may be necessary, mutatis mutandis to raiyats and under-raiyats as if such raiyats and under-raiyats were intermediaries and land held by them were estates. After the extinction of the feudal system of zamindari, the big landlords became intermediaries, but. by virtue of S.6(1) (a), (c), (