1. Special leave granted.

2. Civil Appeal arising out of Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 7314 of 1987 and Civil Appeals arising out of Special Leave Petitions (Civil) Nos. 6837-38 of 1987 are from common judgment of the High Court of Kerala dated 10-c-1986 passed in MFA Nos. 48 and 291 of 1981. The appellant Bhavani Tea and Produce Co. Ltd., hereinafter referred to as 'the company', is a public limited company engaged mainly in plantations

of Tea, Coffee, Cardamom, Rubber and other plantation crops over an extensive area in the Western. Ghats close to the border of the States of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. On the basis of their title deeds, the company claimed to have purchased an extent of 3273.72 acres of land, but it had only 3,151.20 acres in occupation. Bulk of the plantations were purchased by the company in 1946 from M/s. B.B. Rubber Estates Ltd., hereinafter called 'the vendors', and the remaining estates acquired in 1955 and 1956. The vendors were in possession of 3151.20 acres of land situated in surveyed lands in R.S. Nos. 2,3, 3/1 and 5/1 in Sholayar village, Mannarghat Taluk of Palghat district which belonged in 'Jenmom' to Mannarghat Mooppil Sthanam and the ve