VISWANATHA IYER, J. :- The legal representatives of the deceased declarant are the petitioner. The reference to the Full Bench was occasioned by the doubt entertained by a learned single Judge of this court in a related matter, C.R.P. No.1215 of 1982 (which we are disposing of separately) that Section 84(IA) of the Kerala Land Reforms Act, 1963 (Act 1 of 1964) hereinafter referred to as the Act, does not enable exclusion of the lands gifted by the declarant between January 1, 1970 and November, 5, 1974 from his accountable holdings in determining the extent of surrenderable area under the ceiling provisions of the Act. The learned Judge was inclined to take the view that the provision was intended only to protect the interest of the donee and not to confer any benefit on the donor. In other words, the view taken was that after the amendment "it was not open to the Taluk Land Board to accept such a choice" (i.e. to surrender the gifted lands) "made by the declarant because the transferees (or the donees) have valid title under the gift deed"; but the declarant himself cannot claim reduction in the extent of his holding by excluding the lands gifted from his accountable holdings as on 1-1-1970.

2. The declarant in this case, the pre-decessor of the petitioners, one Unniankutty Haji, held an extent of 62.88 acres equivalent to 42. 14 standard acres as on the relevant date namely 1-1-1970. He was entitled to exemption over an extent of 2.88 acres equivalent to 1.88 standard acres under S. 81. The ceiling area applicable to him under S. 82(b) of the Act was 15 acres or 10 standard acres. The order impugned of the Taluk Land Board therefore directed him to surrender an extent of 45. 60 acres of land, in proceedings initiated under S. 85 of the Act.

3. The declarant had made various gifts to his major children between 1-1-1970 and 5-11-1974. The precise extent of the lands covered by these gifts is not available though it is stated to be around 31.06 acres. The declarant claimed that in computing the extent of his holdings as on 1-1-1970 for the purpose of reckoning the surrenderable area, i. e. area held by him in excess of the ceiling limit prescribed by S. 82(b), the lands gifted were liable to be excluded by virtue of S. 84(lA). The Taluk Land Board did not deal with this claim properly, though by the time it passed the order on 29-10-1982, the Kerala Land Reforms (Amendment) Act 27 of 1979 had been enacted introducing S. 84(lA) into the Act with retrospective effect from 1-1-1970.

4. Before dealing with the question raised for consideration, it is necessary to refer to the scheme of the Act and the legislative history behind S. 84(1A). The provisions relating to ceiling on lands held by a person are contained in Chapter III of the Act. Section 81 deals with exemptions to be allowed to a declarant in computing the extent of his holdings, Lands comprised in gifts made between 1-1-1970 and 5-11-1974 do not find a place in these exemptions and it is this fact that led the learned single Judge to entertain his doubt as mentioned earlier. Section 82 of the Act prescribes the ceiling area admissible for different classes of persons/families. Section 83 lays down that no person shall own or hold land in excess of the ceiling limit with effect from the date notified. The date notified is 1-1-1970. Section 84 as it stood after the Amendment Acts 35 of 1969 and 17 of 1972 dealt with voluntary transfers effected by a person during certain specified periods. Subsection (1) lays down that all

voluntary transfers effected by a person after 15-9-1963 (when the Kerala Land Reforms Bill was published) inter alia, otherwise than by way of gift to sons or daughters, or sons or daughters of a predeceased son or daughter, or by way of partition shall be deemed to be transfers intended to defeat the provisions of the Act and shall be invalid. To put it positively, the effect of the provision is that bona fide partitions, and transfers by way of g