Suits for cancellation of sale deeds based on fraud are maintainable in civil courts under the U.P. Zamidari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950.

1. Leave granted.

2. The question for consideration in this appeal is whether the suit filed by the first respondent - plaintiff for cancellation of the sale deed dated 15.06.2006 against the appellant - second defendant and second respondent - first defendant, and for injunction restraining them from interfering with its possession of the property was maintainable?

3. The plaintiff is a private limited company, registered under the Companies Act, 1956. It had purchased from the first defendant certain properties (for short 'the disputed property') in Village Yakootpur, Pargana and Tehsil Dadri, District Gautam Budh Nagar under five sale deeds, all dated 17.10.1998. The plaintiff submitted an application in the office of the Tehsildar for having its name entered in the record in respect of the disputed property. During the pendency of these proceedings, it came to the knowledge of the officials of the plaintiff that the first defendant had illegally sold the disputed property through four registered sale deeds all dated 15.06.2006 in favour of defendant Nos. 2 to 5. Therefore, the plaintiff filed original suit No.55 of 2008 in the court of the Civil Judge (Sr. Division) Gautam Budh Nagar, for cancellation of the said sale deed and also for injunction against the first defendant and the second defendant restraining them from interfering with its possession and use of the property.

4. The second defendant questioned the maintainability of the suit, having regard to S.331 of the U.P. Zamidari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 (for short 'the Act'). The Civil Court vide order dated 22.05.2014 held that the suit was maintainable. The second defendant challenged the said order before the Allahabad High Court. After considering the matter, the High Court dismissed the revision petition by its order dated 17.11.2014. The second defendant has called in question the legality and correctness of the said order in this appeal.

5. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties. It is not in dispute that the disputed property is an agricultural land. The contention of the learned counsel for the second defendant is that the suit in respect of agricultural land is barred under S.331 of the Act. Learned senior counsel appearing for the plaintiff submits that the suit filed by the plaintiff was only for cancellation of the sale deed and for injunction and thus the bar contained in S.331 of the Act is not attracted.

6. This Court in Smt. Bismillah v. Janeshwar Prasad and Ors. , 1990 (1) SCC 207 has drawn a distinction between the suits cognizable by the civil court and the cases where Revenue Court has exclusive jurisdiction. It was also held that the statutory provisions ousting the jurisdiction of the civil court need to be strictly construed. It was held thus:
"7. It is settled law that the exclusion of the jurisdiction of the civil court is not to be readily inferred, but that such exclusion must either be explicitly expressed or clearly implied. The provisions of a law which seek to oust the jurisdiction of civil court need to be strictly construed. S.331 of the Act has been the subject of series of pronouncements of the High Court as to the circumstances and the nature of the suits in which its exclusionary effect operates. Distinction was sought to be drawn between the class of cases where the binding effect of a deed had had to be got rid of by an appropriate adjudication on the one hand and the class of cases in which a transaction could be said to be void in law where what the law holds to be void, there is nothing to cancel or s