Present :

Mr. Justice Ashish Ranjan Das.

Civil Revision No. 1549 of 2006.

In the matter of:

Md. Syed Ali and others

.....Petitioners -Versus-

Forest Beat Officer and others.

..........Opposite parties. Mr. Md. Monir Hossain, Advocate.

....For the petitioners. Mr. Md.Rejaul Karim( Helal) with

Ms. Bilgish Nafisa Hoque, A.A.G.

.....For the opposite parties.

Heard on: 17.11.2019 and 05.12.2019 Judgment on : 15.12.2019

Ashish Ranjan Das, J:

The plaintiff – petitioner filed Title Suit No. 18 of 1993 in the 4th Court of Assistant Judge, Kaliakoir, Gazipur that was dismissed on contest on 28.02.1994, decree signed on 08.03.1994. He preferred appeal being Title Appeal No.38 of 1994 and the learned Joint District Judge, 2nd Court, Gazipur by his judgment and decree dated 03.10.2005 and 10.10.2005 dismissed the appeal also. The propriety of the judgment has been called in question by this civil revisional application under section 115(1) of the Code of Civil Procedure.

Facts leading to this revisional application may be summarized

as under:

The suit plot no.146 covering 9.73 acres appertaining to C.S. khatian Nos.1, 2, 49 and 92 belonged to the Waqf Estate of Baliadi and the plaintiff’s predecessor Soharab Hossain took the land settled on Ist. Baisak, 1355 B.S from its manager Syed Ismail. He took 5.85 acres of land out of the plot from manager Syed Ismail continued possession upon payment of rent to the landlord. On 24.12.1986 Soharab Hossasin sold the land to the plaintiff petitioner Md. Syed Ali and others by way of registered kabala being no. 8504.

As late as on 25.03.1987 the plaintiff came to know that the suit plot has been recorded in S.A. khatian no.93 and R.S. khatian no.511 in the name of the government erroneously. The government recorded the land as a Forest khas land. Hence is the suit for declaration of title pact in the suit land.

The defendant nos. 1, 2, 3 government represented by officers of the department of Forest contested the suit by filing a written statement. Their case is that the suit plot alongwith other plots belonged to the Zamindars of both Sreefaltali and Baliadi. With the advent of State Acquisition and Tenancy Act, the Forest land was made khas by notification no.11397 dated 14.11.1951 and next it was once again was notified in the official gazette being no. 4836 L.R 4849 dated 02.04.1956 as a government khas land. It was once again in 1995 notified in the official gazette under section 4 of the Forest Act of 1927, the gazette notification no. XII for 13-19/85/219 dated 31.03.1985. Since the notification of 1951 the Forest land has been

occupied and managed by the government as a Forest land. Neither the landlord could retain the property as a khas land nor the said landlord ever settled it with the plaintiff’s predecessor Soharab Hossain nor the latter was ever inducted into possession, nor the plaintiff does have any cause of action for bringing the suit while the suit is barred by limitation.

The defendant no.4 a descendent of the zaminder of Baliadi contested the suit by filing a separate written statement. However, he virtually endorsed this case of the plaintiff. Defendant no.6 also contested the suit by filing a separate written statement claiming 2.40 acres of land as a descendent of the landlord of Sreefaltali, He, in one hand admitted that the property was acquired by the government as a Forest land through official gazette and the Landlord of Baliadi had got a writ petition, so that the land could not be acquired but he lost. His further case is that the suit plot did not belong to the landlords of Baliadi. Among other landlords of Sreefaltali had a share and as their descendent this defendant no.6 retained title over 2.40 acres of land.

Both oral and documentary evidences were led and the court below disbelieved the story of oral settlement and possession of the plaintiff and dismissed the suit. The learned appellate judge also took t