A.N.Bhandari, J.

1. This appeal under clause 10 of the Letters Patent, raises the question whether the petitioner was afforded a reasonable opportunity of being heard before his verified claim was reduced from Rs. 5,67,500.00 to Rs. 2,63,250.00 .

2. The petitioner is a displaced land-owner of Pakistan. The Claims Officer appointed under the provisions of the Displaced Persons (Claims) Act, 1950 , verified his claim for a sum of Rs. 5,67,500.00 . The Displaced Persons (Claims) Supplementary Act, 1954, came into force on the 18th March 1954, and a registered notice was issued to the petitioner to appear before Mr. Salig Ram Malik, Additional Settlement Commissioner, Delhi, on 17-1-1955 and show cause why his claim should not be revised. This notice was received back unserved. A notice was then published in "The Tribune" of 15-11-1954, requiring a number of claimants, including the petitioner, to appear before Mr. Malik on 17-1-1955. The petitioner did not appear before Mr. Malik on the due date, but he was later informed that his case was transferred to Mr. Jugal Kishore Khanna on or before the 17th, and that Mr. Khanna passed an ex parte order on 18-1-1955, reducing the peti