( 1 ) THIS writ petition is referred to the Division Bench tor deciding the issue whether a member of joint Hindu family can be considered as landless poor person under A. P. Assigned Lands (Prohibition of Transfers) act, (Act No. IX of 1977 ).

( 2 ) THE petitioner purchased the land from an assignee and the tahsildar passed the impugned order holding that the petitioner is not a landless poor person as he owns ac. 3. 40 cents of wet and 0. 02 cents of dry land and as such the sale is hit by Sec. 3 (1) of the Act. The plea of the petitioner is that he and his two minor sons constitute joint family and his share cf land is below the permissible limit and as such the sale in his favour is valid.-

( 3 ) THE learned counsel for the petitioner contends that the petitioner is a member of the joint family and if a national partition in the family is taken into consideration his share is with in the prescribed limit. The learned Government Pleader contends that the concept of notional partition cannot be introduced and the rule is hit by Section 3.

( 4 ) SECTION 3 of the Act prohibits sale of land by the assignee to any person and the sale is saved if the purchaser is a landles