JUDGMENT

Mr. Sureshwar Thakur, J.

Through the instant petition, the petitioners seek quashing of order(s) made on 09.12.2009 (Annexure P-5), order(s) made on 13.06.2012 (Annexure P-6), order(s) made on 14.06.2013 (Annexure P-8) and order(s) made on 14.09.2016 (Annexure P-9), whereby the espoused declaratory relief became denied to them. Moreover, the petitioners pray, that this Court may affirm Annnexure P-3, whereby, rather the petitioners were declared to be owners in possession of the disputed lands.

2. This Court would proceed to validate (Annexure P-3) and would become led to invalidate the impugned Annexures (supra), only when the petitioners became revealed, by the jamabandis drawn on or prior to 26th January, 1950, to thus through their predecessors-in-interest, make independent cultivating possession of the suit lands. Resultantly the petitioners would become well leveraged to draw, an able sustenance, from the provisions carried in Section 2 (g)(viii) in the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1961 (As applicable to Haryana) hereinafter for short called as the 'Act of 1961'. The said provisions are extracted hereinafter.

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-

xxxxxxx

(g) 'shamilat deh' includes -

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

but does not include land which -

(i) xxxxx

(ii) xxxxx

(iii) xxxxx

(iv) xxxxx

(v) xxxxx

(vi) xxxxx

(vii) xxxxx

(viii) was shamilat deh, was assessed to land revenue and has been in the individual cultivating possession of cosharers not being in excess of their respective shares in such shamilat deh on or before the 26th January, 1950 ; or

(ix) xxxxx

3. A perusal of the above extracted statutory provisions which are but an exception or a saving, to the definition of shamlat deh land, unfold(s) that for the mandate thereof, becoming affirmatively applied vis-a-vis the petitioners, thereupon, they were required to adduce cogent documentary evidence, reflecting that prior to the year 1950, they were in independent cultivating possession of the suit lands.

4. Moreover, the petitioners could well take the benefit of Section 4 (3)(ii) of the 'Act of 1961', provisions whereof are extracted hereinafter, only when the revenue records suggested, that on the date of commencement of the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1953 (hereinafter for short called as the 'Act of 1953') the petitioners, thus through their predecessors-in-interest, were in cultivating possession of the suit lands, but more than twelve years prior to commencement of the Act (supra) i.e. in the year 1953, and such cultivating possession rather was without payment of rent or by payment of charges not exceeding the land revenue and cesses payable thereons.

"4. Vesting of rights in Panchayat and non-proprietors-

(1) xxxxxxx,----

(a) xxxxx;

(b) xxxxx;

(2) xxxxxxx;

(3) Nothing contained in clause (a) of sub-section (1) and in sub-section (2) shall affect or shall be deemed ever to have affected the-

(i) xxxxxxx ;

(ii)rights of persons who were in cultivating possession of shamilat deh on the date of commencement of the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1953 or the Pepsu Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1954, and were in such cultivating possession for more than twelve years on such commencement without payment of rent or by payment of charges not exceeding the land revenue and cesses payable thereon;

(iii)xxxxxxx."

5. Though, the Collector concerned in passing the declaratory decree vis-a-vis the petitioners (Annexure P-3), founded the said declaration, on the basis of jamabandis appertaining to the year(s) 1940-41, 1952-53, 1957-58 and 1961-62 and also appertaining to the years upto 200