The central legal point established is that cancellation of land allotment must consider the limitation period and notice requirements under the U.P.Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950.

Heard Sri Durgesh Pandey holding brief of Sri A.P.Tewari, learned counsel for the petitioner, learned Standing Counsel and Sri Tariq Maqbool Khan, learned counsel appearing for the Gaon Sabha.

2. This writ petition has been filed for issuing a writ of certiorari quashing the orders dated 23.11.2013 passed by the Commissioner, Gorakhpur Division, Gorakhpur in Revision No. 151/M-2013 (Smt. Reshma Vs. Collector, Maharajganj) and order dated 9.5.2013 passed by the Collector Maharajganj in Case No. 144/150.

3. Vide order dated 9.5.2013, the Collector, while exercising his power under Sub-Section 4 of Section 198 of U.P.Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') in a suo motu proceeding, has cancelled the petitioner's allotment made under Section 122-B (4-F) of the Act on 31.1.1996 on the ground that the land in dispute is reserved for school and the benefit of Section 122-B (4-F) of the Act has wrongly been extended to the petitioner.

4. Aggrieved by this order, the petitioner has filed revision before the Commissioner, Gorakhpur Division Gorakhpur, which too has been dismissed.

5. The submission of learned counsel for the petitioner is three fold :-

(i) With respect to the land settled under Section 122-B (4F), no proceeding under Sub-Section 4 of Section 198 could be initiated as the said provision is available only with respect of cancellation of lease.

(ii) The entire proceeding is barred by time in view of Sub-Section 6 of Section 198, which provides period of limitation for initiating the proceeding under Sub-Section 4 of Section 198 of the Act. In this case, allotment was made in the year 1996 to be more specific on 31.1.1996 and the proceeding for cancellation was initiated in the year 2011.

(iii) The impugned order is vitiated on account of non-compliance of Sub-Section 5 of Section 198 of the Act which requires that before cancelling the allotment, the allottees is to be noticed.

6. Learned Standing Counsel as well as counsel appearing for the Gaon Sabha state that they do not propose to file any counter affidavit and the writ petition may be decided on its own merit on the existing facts.

7. For appreciating the controversy in hand, it would be appropriate to go through the following provisions of the Act.

122-B (4-F) of U.P.Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950:-

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing sub-sections, where any agricultural labourer belonging to a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe is in occupation of any land vested in a Gaon Sabha under Section 117 (not being land mentioned in Section 132) having occupied it from before (May 13, 2007) and the land so occupied together with land, if any, held by him from before the said date as bhumidhar, sirdar or asami, does not exceed 1.26 hectares(3.125 acres), then no action under this section

shall be taken by the Land Management Committee or the Collector against such labourer, and (he shall be admitted as bhumidhar with non-transferable rights of that land under Section 195 and it shall not be necessary for him to institute a suit for declaration of his rights as bhumihdar with non-transferable rights in that land).

Section 198 of U.P.Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950:_(1) In the admission of persons to land as (bhumidhar with non-transferbale rights) or asami under Section 195 or Section 197 (hereinafter in this section referred to as allotment of land) the Land Management Committee shall, subject to any order made by a Court under Section 178 observe the following order of preference :

(2) [***]

(3)[ The land that may be allotted under sub-section (1) shall not exceed---

(i) in the case of a person falling under Clause (c ) such area as together with the land held by him as bhumidhar [***] or asami immediately before the allotment would aggregate to 1.26 hectares (3.125 acres) ]

(ii) in any other case, an area of 1.26 hectares (3.125 acres)

(4)The Collector may of his own motion and shall on th