IMPORTANT POINT
Land covered under the U.P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 would not be governed by the Public Premises Act.

JUDGMENT

V.S. Sirpurkar, J.—

1. Leave granted.

2. This judgment will dispose of the SLP (C) 11653 of 2008 as also SLP (C) 25729 of 2008 since both the appeals involve identical points regarding the applicability of UP Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1972 to the land possessed by the respondents, more particularly, the lands vested in or entrusted to the management of the Gaon Sabha and or any other local authority under any law relating to land tenures.

3. By way of the present appeal the State of Uttar Pradesh, now State of Uttarakhand challenges the judgment of the High Court whereby the High Court has allowed the Writ Petition filed by the respondent herein Shri Rabindra Singh.

4. Factual scenario is as follows:

The dispute relates to a land measuring 4.10 bighas in Khasra Plot No.1371/24/1 situated in village Saran. The said land was in possession of the respondent since 1384 Fasli. The High Court has allowed the Writ Petitions by these two judgments holding that such lands would not be covered within the definition of “public premises” under the UP Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1972 (hereinafter called the ‘Public Premises Act’, for short). Basically the question boils down as to whether the lands which are covered by the definition in Section 3(14) of the UP Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 can be said to be public premises and, therefore, covered under the Public Premises Act.

5. We shall take up the facts in this appeal arising out of SLP (C) 11653 of 2008. The respondent Rabindra Singh possessed aforementioned land since the year 1384 Fasli. He claimed to be in cultivating possession like other respondents. He was served with notice under Section 4 (1) of the Public Premises Act directing him to show cause as to why he should not be evicted from the land Khasra plot no. 1371/24/1, measuring 4.10 bighas situated in village Saran, Tehsil Bazpur as he was in unauthorized occupation of the land. He filed his written statements before the prescribed authority, namely, Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Kashipur contending that he was also in possession of land measuring 26.13 bighas and the said land and the disputed land became a compact plot and that he was in possession of the said plot since 1960, and, therefore, he was prepared to get it regularized. Along with the writ statement, he also filed the map and Khatauni of the land. In the evidence led before the authority he supported his case by showing that the disputed land was earlier in the shape of a drain and he had improved it and made it capable of cultivation. There are two witnesses examined by him to support his case of continuous possession. As against this, in his evidence the Patwari of the village stated that the respondent was in unauthorized possession since 1384 Fasli and was for public utility. Without giving any reasons, the Sub Divisional Magistrate, Nainital straightway recorded that the possession of Rabindra Singh was unauthorized and, therefore, in exercise of the power under sub Section 1 of Section 5 of the Public Premises Act he directed to evict the writ-petitioner within 30 days.

6. Writ petitioner filed an appeal before the District Judge Nainital wherein the District Judge without any discussion recorded that the disputed land was public premise and the occupant of the appellant was under Class IV and since the appellant did not have any authority to occupy he could not resist his eviction. The appeal was dismissed.

7. The matter was taken up before the Allahabad High Court by way of a writ petition. Eventually since the land was in newly created State of Uttarakhand the matter was transferred to the Uttarakhand High court. It is contended that the High Court also noted the contentions raised on behalf of the writ petitioner (respondent herein) that no notice could be issued in respect of the land over eviction as the land was in cultivating possession of the concerned cultivator.