Lalit Mohan Sharma, J.

By this writ application, the petitioner has challenged the ORDER :in Annexure 4' passed by the Commissioner, Patna (respondent No. 2) in a proceeding under the provisions of the Bihar Money Lenders Act, 1974 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'). An application by Smt. Ram Kumari Devi, since dead, mother of the present respondents 4 to 9 who has been described as the respondents 2nd set was under section 12 of the Act alleging that the land fully described in paragraph 3 of the writ application had been given in usufructuary mortgage to the petitioner on the 19th December, 1967, that is, more than seven years earlier and by virtue of the provisions of the section, all dues in respect of the mortgage must be deemed to have been fully satisfied and the mortgage redeemed. She was, therefore, entitled to recovery of possession. The petitioner resisted the application inter alia on the ground that the mortgage in question was not usufructuary in nature so as to attract the provisions of section 12 and the application was, therefore, not maintainable. The Deputy Commissioner Land Reforms, the Collector under the Act (respondent no. 3) who heard the appli