M.M.PUNCHHI, J.

1. These cases, which are five in number, reveal the typical land-grab resorted to by people occupying panchayat lands which were meant for the general benefit of the rural inhabitants of the village.

2. In these five writ petitions, Nos. 2726, 2774, 3797, 3798 and 3799 of 1984, there is a common petitioner, Gram Panchayat of village Haripura, tehsil Fazilka, district Ferozepur. On the opposite side are arrayed three respondents, two being officials and the third contesting one claiming to be a tenant of the panchayat, resisting eviction under the provisions of the Punjab Public Premises and Land (Eviction and Rent Recovery) Act, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the Act ). Since the facts giving rise to each of them are identical, we would take a broad conspectus of the things emerging from one of the cases.

3. The land covered in all the five cases was Shamlat Deh as the expression was known to the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1953 (hereinafter referred to as the Shamlat Law ). Such land by virtue of the Shamilat Law vested in the gram panchayat. The owners of the shamilat land, however, adopted a device in writing a memorandum of associati