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Writ Petition No.293/R and Criminal Miscellaneous No. 1 of 1983, decided on 23rd January, 1984.

---S.2--Displaced Persons (Compensation and Rehabilitation) Act (XXVIII of 1958), S.10--Mukhbari application--Such application granted without hearing person who was entered into revenue record as owner Such person having exchanged disputed land with other land was in cultivating possession--Petitioner before cancellation of allotment of land, held, should have been heard--Such cancellation order was passed in violation of cardinal principle of natural justice--Order being without jurisdiction was declared to be of no legal effect--Case was ordered to be remitted to Notified Officer, for fresh decision in accordance with law within specified time limit. --[Jurisdiction].

Mahmood-ul-Haq Thanvi for Petitioner No. 1.

Nemo for the Respondents Nos. 1, 5 to 7.

Qazi Abdul Hayee for Respondent No.2.

Muhammad Ghani for Respondent No.3 and 4.

Date of hearing: 23rd January, 1984.

This petition arises out of order dated 12-1-1977 of the learned Additional Settlement Commissioner (Land) Gujranwala whereby he allowed the 'Mukhbari' application filed by respondent No.2 and cancelled allotment of land in dispute holding the same to be in excess of the entitlement of the claimants.

2. The case of petitioner No.1 is that he had purchased the land in dispute for valuable consideration from one Munshi in the year 1965 an,,' mutation No.148 testifying the transaction was sanctioned in his favour. The aforesaid land was exchanged with the land in village hot Bela, Tehsil Hafizabad, District Gujranwala belonging to petitioner No.2 and mutation No.517 was sanctioned. According to the petitioners the 'Mukhbari' application was moved by respondent No.2 in connivance with the officials of the Settlement Department after the repeal of the Displaced Persons (Land Settlement) Act, 1958 and succeeded in obtaining the impugned order behind the back of the petitioners. The petitioners were not associated with the so-called inquiry conducted by respondent No.l although their names existed in the revenue record prior to the passing of the impugned order.

3. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of respondent No.2 stated that the allotment of the land in dispute was fraudulently procured in the name of Munahi. Idst. Fatima Bibi his widow made a statement before the Settlement Commissioner that the land in dispute was got allotted fraudulently by persons who had no relation with the deceased claimant. In the course of inquiry it was found, that the land in dispute was got allotted in excess of the entitlement of Munshi and the same was rightly cancelled. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of respondents Nos.3 and 4 supported the submissions made by learned counsel for respondent No.2.

4. I have considered the contentions raised by learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the documents on the file. The entries in the revenue record showed the petitioner No.l to be owner of the land in dispute. He exchanged the same with other land situated in different villages belonging to petitioner No.2. The petitioners claimed that eversince the land in dispute was purchased by them they were in cultivating possession thereof.

In these circumstances it was necessary for respondent No.l t _l have heard them before passing the impugned order resulting in cancellation of the allotment of land made in favour of the predecessor- in-interest of the petitioners. The respondent No.l passed the impugned order in violation of the cardinal principle of natural justice, the same being without jurisdiction is declared to be of no legal effect.

5. In the result this petition is allowed and the same is remitted t the Chief Settlement Commissioner to entrust the same to the Notified) Officer as envisaged under section 2 of Act XIV of 1975 for fresh decision in accordance with law; within three months.

8. There shall be no order as to costs.

9. C.M.1/83 also stands disposed of.

A.A.

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