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1993 Supreme(Guj) 327

Gujarat High Court
Judgename :R.A.MEHTA
THAKERSHI POPATBHAI PATEL - Appellant
Versus
STATE - Respondent
First Appeal2897 of 1992
Decided On : 08/27/1993

Advocates Appeared: B.J.MEHTA, K.M.CHHAYA, K.S.Nanavati

Headnote:Urban Land (Ceiling & Regulation) Act, 1976 — Ss. 34 &45 — Power of revision by State under Sec. 34 — Such power can not be construed as confering any right of review — Sec. 45 invest power of correcting clerical, arithmetical mistake or error arising out of slip of pen or omission — No provision under the Act conferring power of review its order once passed by State — Order dated 10.3.93 quashed.

       Even though section 34 provides that the State Government may examine any order under the Act, that power is recognised and labelled by the Legislature itself as a power of revision and not of review. If the Legislature wanted any express power of review, it would have used that expression for enabling the Government to review own order and not revision of orders. Section 34 cannot be construed to confer any right of review. Section 45 is the power of correcting clerical error, arithmatical mistake or error arising out of slip of pen or omission. In the present case, there is no case of any such clericla or arithmatical error or accidental mistake. Neither Section 34 or section 45 give any power to the State Government to review its own order. The State Government is, therefore, lacking in the power in taking the Proceedings under section 34 to revise its own order dated January 16,1992, at annexure-C to the petition. Therefore, the petition deserves to be allowed by quashing and setting aside the order dated March 30,1993 at page 37 of the paper book and restraining the Government from Proceeding again under section 34 of the Act. Therefore, rule is made absolute accordingly with no order as to costs.

       [Para 11]

       Suo motu cognizance — Matter of public importance — State Government order dated 30.3.93 to review its impugned order quashed for want of jurisdiction — In these circumstances High Court took suo motu cognizance & issued notices and directed to place matter before Division Bench.

       The matter cannot be allowed to rest and the High Court must take suo motu cognisance of the situation. It is, therefore, directed that suo moto rule to issue to 24 persons mentioned in the order at annexure-C, (page 32 of the paper book) and to the State Government which has passed the order at annexure-C, to show cause asto why that order should not be quashed and set aside and why the order of the Competent Authority declaring 31045 sq. mts. of land as surplus vacant land should not be restored and why permission granted under section 26 should not be set aside and why such other orders as the nature of the case may require, should not be passed. Such rule be made returnable on march 7,1994.

       [Para 12]

       In view of the fact that the matter is of public importance and there is a question of effect of the order of the Division Bench passed in Letters Patent Appeal. it would be appropriate that the matter is heard by a Division Bench.

       [Para 13]

R. A. MEHTA, J.

( 1 ) ). This petition arises in peculiar facts and circumstances and smacks of a huge scandal in valuable urban land of crores. The question raised is a simple and legal one. By an order dated January 16 1992 (Annexure-C to the petition) passed in revision under Section 34 of the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) the Govt. revised the order of the Competent Authority declaring 31045 sq. mts. of land as surplus vacant land and the Govt. held that 24 individuals were entitled to hold 1500 sq. mts. each and therefore there was no surplus land. The order of the Competent Authority was passed on September 25 1986 and the Govt. in the revision filed after about five years on February 25 1991 passed the order of January 16 1991 The Competent Authority had held that the land was held by these persons as an association of persons and were entitled to one unit. The form was also filed accordingly. An application under Section 21 for exemption and sanction of the scheme was also filed by these persons as an association of persons and was rejected. Later on a case was put up that there was an unregistered partnership of 24 persons and it was dissolved before the commencement of the Act by unregistered deed of dissolution and therefore each of such person was entitled to a separate unit. The Competent Authority rejected that claim and declared surplus 31035 sq. mts. of urban vacant land of Survey No. 146 in Rajkot urban agglomeration. An appeal against the said order was preferred to the Urban Land Ceiling Tribunal under the Act. The appeal also came to be dismissed and the findings of the Competent Authority were confirmed.

( 2 ) ). Special Civil Application No. 5397 of 1987 was preferred against the same. It was also dismissed at the admission stage by a speaking order dated October 27 1989 which is at Annexure-A to the present petition. In that judgment the learned single Judge summarised the findings of the Competent Authority and the Appellate Authority as follows: thereafter the Tribunal considered the evidence which was there on the record and arrived at the conclusion that by a registered deed dated 15 the land admeasuring 42392 sq. mts. of Section No. 146 of village Raiya was purchased by the petitioner and two other persons jointly. For that mutation Entry No. 944 dated 3-3- 1966 was mutated. Thereafter the said land is not transferred by any registered deed. The so-called deed of dissolution dated 15-12-1973 is a doubtful document. The stamp paper for the said deed is dated 31st October 1967 which is purchased from Bombay. As the document is executed on 15-12-1973 it seems that on a cancelled stamp paper the alleged deed is executed. The said deed is not registered. The Tribunal further considered that the alleged firm of M/s. R. N. Construction Company was also not registered. Therefore the alleged deed of dissolution of the said Company was void. The Tribunal further held that the petitioner has failed to prove that it was a bona fide transaction Similarly Amratlal Construction Company was also not registered. The dissolution deed is not registered and as the said dissolution deed was executed after 7-2-1975 the petitioner has failed to prove that it was a bona fide transaction. The Tribunal further took into consideration that even in the form filled in by petitioner Ramanlal Nanalal Jasani the said form is filled in as an association of individuals In the said form this land is shown to be vacant land. The Tribunal further considered the fact that the application filed under Section 21 of the Act was also rejected and the land was open land at the time when the Act came into force It further considered the affidavit dated 1-8-1983 and arrived at the conclusion that when the Act came into force the land was open land and bogus partnerships and dissolution deeds were created. The Tribunal therefore rejected the appeal filed by the appellant (petitioner) by the order da




















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