1. This appeal is directed against an ex-parte order of the Authority constituted under Sec. 52-C of the Jammu and Kashmir Forest Act, 1987. hereinafter to be referred to as the Act, certifying a sum of Rs. 20,50,513.00 to be recoverable as arrears of land revenue by the State of Jammu and Kashmir, respondent No, 1 herein, from Malik Abdul Ahad Shah, one of the partners in the appellant-firm M/s Malik Abdul Ahad Shah Jalil Ahmad Rather.

2. The respondent State of Jammu and Kashmir, filed a petition under Sec 52-B of the Act for a certificate to recover as arrears of land revenue a sum of Rs. 10,81,487.00 on account of principal sum, and a further sum of Rs. 6,52,429.00 by way of interest on account of belated payments of royalty dues against the appellant-firm, which was shown to be represented by its partner Malik Abdul Ahad Shah, the second respondent to the petition. A third respondent, namely, Khawaja Mohd Ahsan Wani was also added to the petition, who was later on deleted from the array of respondents by the Authority, hereinafter to be referred to as the Forest Authority, by its order dated 14-7-1977, on accepting his plea that he was not a party to the contract of lease, but had merely acted as an attorney of the appellant, adding, that this power of attorney was also later on revoked.

3. The claim in the petition was based upon a lease granted in favour of the appellant in respect of Compartment No. 21 Shopian Range. Pir Panchal Forest Division, for a period of two years viz. 1963 and 1964, on acceptance of the highest bid of Rs. 17,61,991.11 offered by it. Govt. order No. FST/174/63 of 1963 sanctioning the lease in favour of the appellant was issued on 4-12-1963, pursuant to which a deed of contract also came to be executed on 13-5-1964 between the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir and the appellant which was signed on the formers behalf by the Conservator of Forests, Kashmir South Circle, Srinagar. Soon thereafter, work order in favour of the appellant for taking possession of the Compartment and for exploitation of timber from it was also issued by the Conservator of Forests, Kashmir South Circle on 11-4-1964, and the possession of the coupe Landed over to the appellant. The volume of timber which could have been extracted out of the coupe, was estimated at 6,70,974 cft. 6,521 cft. of kail and 6,64,453 cft. of Fir. In addition to it, the appellant, persuant to a supplementary Marking, was also allowed to exploit timber out of the damaged trees, the cost whereof was estimated at Rs 2,18,136.88. The appellant not havinq been able to execute the work within the time initially stipulated, extensions were granted in its favour from time to time upto 15-9-1971, whereafter possession of the coupe was taken back from it. The total timber extracted by the appellant during this period was 7,595 cft. of Kail and 1,83,939 cft. of Fir. In the premises the first respondent worked out his claim in the following manner :

(i) Original royalty amount = Rs. 17,61,991.11

(ii) Amount due on account of supplementary marking = Rs 2,16,136.89

(iii) Interest on account of delayed payments = Rs 6,52,429.00

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TOTAL: Rs 26,30,557.00

Less payments actually made = Rs 8,96.641.00

Balance including interest: Rs. 17,32.916.00

3. Conceding that the contract of lease between the parties, in view of the law laid down by this court in State of Jammu and Kashmir and others Vs, M/s Goodwill Forest Leassees and anr., AIR 1974 J & K 1 (Full Bench) was void ab-initio, the 1st respondent laid this claim petition before the Forest Authority.

4. The appellant resisted the aforesaid claim inter alia on the grounds ; that the estimate of total 6,70,974 cft. of timber which the appellant was expected to have extracted was found to be incorrect, as all the trees out of which this timber had to be extracted did not turn out to be sound ; that the appellant did not actually extract 7,595 cft. of Kail and 1,83,939 cft. of Fir, but extracted a

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