JUDGMENT

Mukundakam Sharma, J.

1. The present Civil Appeal emanates from the judgment and order dated 12th August 1997 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in Writ Petition No. 8927 of 1988, whereby the Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the writ petition filed by the Appellants. Whether the High Court was justified in holding that the Appellants were not entitled to any compensation even when their forest land is acquired by the government, merely because the Appellants had not derived any income from the said forest, is one of the several important questions of law which has arisen for consideration in the present appeal.

2. The Appellant's father Shri P.N. Sarin had in the year 1945 acquired proprietary right in an Estate known as Beni Tal Fee Simple Estate situated in Pargana Chandpur, Tehsil Karan Prayag, District Chamoli, Uttarakhand (hereinafter referred to as "the property in question") which comprised of large tracts of forest spanning in and around 1600 acres. On the death of Shri P.N. Sarin in the year 1976 Appellants succeeded to the property in question. By a Gazette Notification dated 21st December, 1977 under Section 4-A of the Kumaun and Uttarakhand Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1960 (hereinafter referred to as "KUZALR Act") as amended by the U.P. Act No. 15 of 1978, the rights, title and interest of every hissedar in respect of forest land situated in the specified areas ceased with effect from 01st January, 1978 and the same were vested in the State Government. A notice issued by the Assistant Collector, Karan Prayag, District Chamoli, under Rule 2 of the Kumaun and Uttrakhand Zamindari Abolition and Land Reform Rules, 1965 (hereinafter referred to as "the KUZALR Rules") framed under the KUZALR Act was served upon the Appellants intimating them that effective from 1st January, 1978, the rights, title and interest of hissedar in respect of the property in question had vested in the State Government free from all encumbrances and it invited objections and statement, if any, relating to the compensation qua the property in question.

3. Assailing the aforesaid notice issued by the Assistant Collector, the Appellants preferred a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution before this Court. On 13th December 1978 while disposing the aforesaid writ petition, this Court passed the following order

We are of the opinion that it will be better if the Petitioner files a petition under Article 226 of the Constitution in the High Court. This Petition is therefore allowed to be withdrawn.

4. Subsequently, on 02nd April 1979 the Appellants filed objections to the notice issued by the Assistant Collector challenging the vires of the KUZALR Act and also stating that no profit was being made from the property in question. By an order dated 11th April 1988, the Assistant Collector dismissed the objections of the Appellants by observing that that he had no jurisdiction to consider the legal validity of the KUZALR Act. With regard to the issue of compensation, the Assistant Collector held that since the KUZALR Act does not provide for a method to compute compensation in cases where no income has been derived from the forests, the Appellants were not entitled to any compensation.

5. Feeling aggrieved, the Appellants preferred a writ petition in the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad questioning the legality and validity of the order of the Assistant Collector and also challenging the constitutional validity of Sections 4A, 18(1)(cc) and 19(1)(b) of the KUZALR Act. By impugned judgment dated 12th August 1997, the High Court dismissed the writ petition.

6. Not satisfied with the judgment rendered by the High Court, the Appellants preferred a Special Leave Petition in which leave was granted by this Court by order dated 11th September 1998. By an order passed on 11th August, 2010, this appeal was directed to be listed before the Constitution Bench. This matter was thereafter listed before the Const