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HIGH COURT OF CALCUTTA
CHAKRABARTI, DAS GUPTA, LAHIRI, S. R. DASS, SARMA SARKAR
RABINDRA NATH MAHAPATRA - Appellant
Versus
GOUR MONDAL - Respondent
Civil Revn. Case 3397 Of 1955
Decided On : DECEMBER 21, 1956
WEST BENGAL BARGADARS ACT - REPEAL - PENDING PROCEEDINGS - APPLICABILITY - WEST BENGAL BARGADARS ORDINANCE, 1956 - WEST BENGAL BARGADARS ACT, 1956 - EFFECT - SAVING PROVISIONS - INTERPRETATION.
Fact of the Case:
The petitioners filed an application before the Bhagchas Board for delivery of their usual share of barga crops for the years 1360 and 1361 B. S. The opposite party claimed to hold the land not as a bargadar but as a Sanjadar at a rent of a certain quantity of paddy per bigha of a certain measurement. The Bhagchas Board accepted the case of the opposite party and directed him to pay as a sanjadar the share of crops due to the petitioners as jotedars. The petitioners appealed to the Appellate Officer who held that the admission recorded by the Board had in fact been made before that body and covered the whole case of the opposite party and not merely the local measurement of the bigha. The appeal was dismissed. The petitioners moved the High Court under Article 227 of the Constitution and obtained a Rule. The question arose before the High Court as to the effect of the repeal of the West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1950 on the proceedings before it.
Finding of the Court:
The West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1950 was a temporary Act due to remain in force upto 31-3-1953. It was extended twice, first upto 1955 and then upto 1956. The Act was repealed by the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955, with effect from 31-3-1956. Section 8, Bengal General Clauses Act, saved rights accrued or liabilities incurred under the repealed Act, saved also investigations, proceedings and remedies in respect of such rights and liabilities and provided that such investigations, proceedings and remedies may be instituted, continued or enforced notwithstanding the repeal of the Act, but only "as if the repealing Act had not been passed". The West Bengal Bargadars Ordinance, 1956, and the West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1956, which replaced the Ordinance, saved only certain proceedings brought or to be brought under the provisions of the Bargadars Act itself. They did not save the provisions of the Act for the purposes of pending proceedings under other laws.
Issues: Whether the provisions of a temporary Act-- the West Bengal Bargadars Act -- are applicable to pending proceedings after its repeal.
Ratio Decidendi: 1. A temporary Act extended from time to time is deemed even as to such extensions as passed when it was first enacted. 2. The West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1950, was a temporary Act enacted in 1950 and due to expire on the expiration of 31-3-1956. 3. The Act was repealed by the West Bengal Land Reforms Act, 1955, with effect from 31-3-1956. 4. Section 8, Bengal General Clauses Act, saved rights accrued or liabilities incurred under the repealed Act, saved also investigations, proceedings and remedies in respect of such rights and liabilities and provided that such investigations, proceedings and remedies may be instituted, continued or enforced notwithstanding the repeal of the Act, but only "as if the repealing Act had not been passed". 5. The West Bengal Bargadars Ordinance, 1956, and the West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1956, which replaced the Ordinance, saved only certain proceedings brought or to be brought under the provisions of the Bargadars Act itself. They did not save the provisions of the Act for the purposes of pending proceedings under other laws.
Final Decision: The provisions of the West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1950 are, at the present date, alive for the purposes of and applicable only to, and in, such pending proceedings, authorised by the Act itself, as are mentioned in Section 2 (1) (a), West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1956, provided they were pending on 31-3-1956 and also at the date of the Act. The provisions of the Act are not applicable to or in pending proceedings under other laws, although questions relating to the Act may be involved therein.
( 1 ) THIS is a Reference under Rule 1 (ii) of Chapter II of the Appellate Side Rules of a question of law arising out of the repeal of the West Bengal Bargadars Act, 1950. The facts which led up to the Reference are as follows:
( 2 ) ON 2-6-1955, the petitioners made an application to the Bhagchas Board of Thana Mahisadal by which they prayed for an order on the opposite party for the delivery of their usual share of barga crops for the years 1360 and 1361 B. S. which was said to be in arrear. The case of the petitioners was that the opposite party was a bargadar under them in respect of a particular plot of land but had failed and neglected to deliver the share of the paddy due to them. They alleged further that the opposite party had converted a part of the land into a betel leaf plantation in violation of the terms of the barga settlement and that he had also excavated a doba without any right or authority to do so. The petitioners did not ask for any relief for those transgressions but stated that they would bring a regular suit for recovery of possession in due course. Before the Bhagchas Board they claimed only their share of the barga crops.
( 3 ) THE case of the opposite party was that while he did hold the land under the petitioners, he held it not as a bargadar at all but as a Sanjadar at a rent of a certain quantity of paddy per bigha of a certain measurement. He claimed to have acquired a tenancy right and with regard to the doba he said that it had been excavated over thirty years ago. The Bhagchas Board accepted the case of the opposite party and said in its order that it was a proceeding upon an admission by the petitioners. The only order it made was to direct the opposite party to pay as a sanjadar the share of crops due to the petitioners as jotedars. Although the Board was constituted of 5 members the order was signed by only 3 of them.
( 4 ) THE petitioners next preferred an appeal to the Appellate Officer under Section 11 of the Act. The Appellate Officer held that the admission recorded by the Board had in fact been made before that body and covered the whole case of the opposite party and not merely the local measurement of the bigha. The opposite party's status of a sanjadar was held to be proved also by certain rent receipts which were produced before the Appellate Officer for the first time and by the excavation of the tank which, it was thought, could not have been ventured on by a mere share cropper. On those findings the appeal was dismissed.
( 5 ) THE order of the Board was made on 27-6-1955 and that of the Appellate Officer on the 5th August following.
( 6 ) ON 1-12-1955, the petitioners moved this Court under Article 227 of the Constitution and obtained a Rule. They complained of the receipt of additional evidence by the Appellate Officer and also of the misunderstanding of their admission upon which the authorities below had proceeded. A special point taken in the petition was that the order made by the Board having been signed by only 3 out of 5 members of the Board, was bad for that reason alone and altogether void. The relief asked for by the petitioners was an order under Section 7 (1) (a), Bargadars Act, for their due share of crops from the opposite party upon a finding that he was a bargadar under them.
( 7 ) THE Rule came up for hearing before Lahiri J. , sitting singly on 27-4-1956, along with certain other Rules. By that date, the Bargadars Act had been repealed. Naturally a question was raised before the learned Judge as to the effect of the repeal on the proceedings before him and thereupon he directed all the Rules to be placed before a Division Bench for disposal in view of the general importance of the question. The Rule next came up for hearing before a Division Bench constituted of Das Gupta and Guha JJ. , on 13-6-1956, when the learned Judges took the view that the question was too important even for a Division Bench and should be decided finally and
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