important point
A transferee cannot acquire the granted land from the grantee without seeking the permission of the government nor can the grantee transfer it without seeking prior permission from the government.

judgment

Tarun Chatterjee, J. –

1.The subject matter of this appeal relates to the Government granted land measuring 2 acres 20 guntas in Sy.No.365/1 (New No.685) situated at Nayakanahatti Village, Challakera Taluk, District Chitradurga in the state of Karnataka (herein after referred to as the ‘scheduled land’). The certificate of grant was issued on 10th of September, 1955 in favour of one Shri Tejyanaika in which one of the conditions stipulated was that the grantee shall not alienate the granted land for a period of 15 years.

2.On 10th of September, 1970, the abovementioned period of 15 years during which the land could not be alienated as per the conditions of the certificate of grant had expired. After the expiry of the aforesaid period of 15 years, more precisely on 6th of July, 1976, an agreement to sell was executed by the legal heirs of the original grantee who, in the meantime, had expired. Under this agreement for sale, the vendors, namely, the legal heirs of the original grantee had agreed to sell the scheduled land to the father of the appellant. Subsequent to the agreement for sale and the commencement of the Act, more precisely on 13th of October, 1986, a deed of sale was executed and registered by the vendors in respect of the scheduled land. After the registration of the sale deed, the authority under the Act initiated a proceeding for resumption of the scheduled land as, according to the authorities, the sale was in violation of the provisions of the Act. This is because the sale was effected after the commencement of the Act without previous permission of the government. An order was passed by the Assistant Commissioner who had the authority to direct resumption of the land holding that the sale having taken place on 13th of October, 1986, when the Act had already come into force, the sale deed dated 13th of October, 1986 must be found to be null and void in view of the prohibition contained in Section 4 of the Act. An appeal was carried against the aforesaid order before the appellate authority which was also dismissed, inter alia, on the finding that the title of the scheduled land could not pass under the registered sale deed dated 13th of October, 1986 as, admittedly, the same was executed and registered after the coming into force of the act and therefore, in view of Section 4 (2) of the Act, the sale made without obtaining prior permission of the Government was found to be null and void. Feeling aggrieved by the concurrent orders of the Assistant Commissioner as well as the appellate authority, a writ petition was filed before the High Court of Karnataka at Bangalore, which was dismissed by a learned Judge of the High Court and against that order of the learned Single Judge, a writ appeal was filed, which was also dismissed. Feeling aggrieved, this special leave petition was filed in respect of which leave has already been granted.

3.We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and examined the orders passed by the High Court as well as the authorities below. On a careful examination of the aforesaid orders and the materials on record and also the provisions of the Act, including the objects and reasons for which this act was introduced, we are of the view that this appeal is liable to be dismissed for the reasons given hereunder, but before we proceed further, we may keep it on record that when the agreement for sale dated 6th of July, 1976 was subsisting, the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands) Act, 1978 (in short ‘the Act’) came into force with effect from 1st of January, 1979.

4.The only question that needs to be decided in this appeal is whether the sale deed, which was executed and registered after the commencement of the Act but in respect of which, the agreement for sale was executed before the commencement of the Act, would be hit by the provisions of Section 4 of the Act. In order to decide this question and before considering the rele