JUDGMENT :

SANDEEP V. MARNE, J.

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With the consent of the learned counsels for the parties, petition taken up for final hearing.

2. By this petition, Petitioners challenge order dated August 21, 2019 passed by the District Superintendent of Land Records, Solapur thereby condoning the delay in filing Appeal for correction of area of Respondent’s land under the Consolidation Scheme.

3. Briefly stated, facts of the case are that the land bearing Survey No. 115 admeasuring 27 Hectares 6 Gunthas was originally owned by Hari G. Koli. Out of that area, land admeasuring 8 Acres 26 Gunthas was purchased by Yesu Gadade by sale-deed dated June 30, 1968. Respondent is the son of Yesu Gadade, who died in the year 1972. The Consolidation Scheme was implemented in the village in the year 1964-65. Under the Consolidation Scheme, the land at by which Survey No. 115 was given Gat No. 424. Accordingly, Mutation Entry no. 1008 was effected and the area of Respondent’s land at Gat No. 424 was erroneously stated as 2 Hectares 89 Ares instead of 3 Hectares 47 Ares.

4. It appears that in the year 1993, the Respondent applied to the Tehsildar for area correction of land at Gat No. 424 and the Tehsildar passed order dated June 1, 1993 correcting the area of land as 3 Hectares 47 Ares. However, the necessary correction was not effected in the Consolidation Scheme. With a view to effect necessary correction in the Consolidation Scheme, Respondent filed an application before the District Superintendent of Land Records, Solapur in the year 2014 and sought correction of the Scheme to the limited extent of area. Respondent also sought condonation of delay in filing his application. By order dated December 31, 2014, the District Superintendent of Land Records was pleased to reject the application for condonation of delay. Respondent preferred an appeal before the Deputy Director of Land Records, Pune bearing Appeal No. 3215/2015 challenging the order of the District Superintendent of Land Records, Solapur dated December 31, 2014. The Deputy Superintendent of Land Records, Pune was pleased to allow the Appeal by his order dated August 16, 2017 and set aside the order of the District Superintendent of Land Records, Solapur and remanding the proceedings for fresh determination of issue of delay condonation. It appears that, after the proceedings were remanded before the District Superintendent of Land Records, Solapur, Respondent filed fresh application on March 19, 2019 seeking condonation of delay. He also filed an application dated May 21, 2019 for amendment of the application for condonation of delay.

5. Petitioners herein contested the application for amendment. The District Superintendent of Land Records by his order dated August 21, 2019 has allowed the application for condonation of delay and has fixed the main proceedings for decision on merits. Petitioners are aggrieved by the order dated August 21, 2019 and have filed the present petition.

6. Mr. Ajay Joshi, the learned counsel for the Petitioners would submit that there was inordinate delay of 44 years in filing the proceedings before the District Superintendent of Land Records, Solapur. That perusal of the impugned order would show that there is no finding recorded about sufficient cause being made out by the Respondent for condonation of delay. That instead of restricting his order to condoning the delay for showing sufficient cause, the District Superintendent of Land Records has considered merits of the matter and on that ground, condoned inordinate delay of 44 years delay, which is impermissible in law. That therefore there is a jurisdictional error in the impugned order. Mr. Joshi, would further submit that though the power of condoning the delay is discretionary, in absence of any foundational facts being laid by the Respondent, the Authority could not have condoned such an inordinate delay. That there is patent illegality in the order, on account of which the s