Appeal No 1298 of 1968
Appeal by Special Leave from the Judgment and Order dated 22 9 67 of the Mysore High Court in Writ Petition No 219067
SV Gupte SS Javali and B Dutta for the Appellant
AK Verma Mrs for Ms JB Dadachanji and Cofor Respondents 1 and 2
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by KHANNA J
This is an appeal by special leave against the judgment of the Mysore High Court whereby the High Court dismissed petition under articles 226 and 227 filed by the appellants to challenge the order dated September 12 1967 of the Mysore Revenue Appellate Tribunal hereinafter re ferred to as the Tribunal
The brief facts giving rise to this appeal are that the first resdent applied on April 22 1959 to the Assistant Commissioner Bagalkot for the restoration of the Patilkiwatanlands survey Nos 322 542 and 492 under sections 11 11A and 12 of the Bombay Hereditary Offi cers Act hereinafter referred to as the Act
Possession of those lands was sought on the ground that the appellants who were strangers had taken possession of the lands
The Assistant 321 Commissioner as per order dated August 11 1960 accepted that application and directed that the possession of the lands be restored to the respondents
Appeal filed by the appellants against that order was dismissed by the Deputy Commissioner as per order dated January 24 1961
The appellantas then went up in revision before the Tribunal
The Tribunal as per order dated May 5 1962 accepted the revision petition and held that the appellants were not strangers to the watan
In arriving as this conclusion the Tribunal held disagreeing with the Assistant Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner that the watan had been acquired by Basangouda I
The respondents challenged the order of the Tribunal by means of a writ petition
The Writ petition filed by the respondents was accepted by the Mysore High Court as per judgment dated December 18 1964 and it was held that it was not open to the Tribunal to reopen and set aside findings of fact in a revision petition
The case was accordingly remitted to the Tribunal for fresh deci sion in the light of the observations of the High Court
When the matter came up before the Tribunal after the above judgment of the High Court the Tribunal as per order dated September 12 1967 upheld the findings of the Assist ant Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner that the watan had been acquired by Basangouda II and not by Basangouda I
It may be stated that Basangouda I was the grandfa ther of Basangouda II and that unless it be shown that the watan had been acquired by Basangouda I the appellant would have to be held strangers qua the lands in dispute
The Tribunal accordingly dismissed the revision petition which had been filed by the appellants
The appellants thereafter filed petition under articles 226 and 227 before the High Court and assailed the above order of the Tribunal
The High Court dismissed the writ petition on the ground that the finding that the appellants were strangers to the watan was one of fact and it was not open to the High Court to reopen the concurrent findings of the Assistant Commission er the Deputy Commissioner and the Tribunal in a writ petition
In appeal before us Mr Gupte on behalf of the appel lants has contended that the High Court was in error in not interfering with the order of the Tribunal whereby the revision petition filed by the appellants had been dis missed
It is urged that the Tribunal in affirming the findings of the Assistant Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner regarding the question of the appellants being strangers qua the land in dispute took a very restricted view of section 79 of the Act dealing with revision
This contention in our opinion is not well founded
The High Court at the time of the decision of the earlier writ peti tion on December 13 1964 recorded a finding and gave direc tions to the Tribunal not to reopen the questions of fact in revision
The Tribunal while passing the order dated Sep tember 12 1967 complied with those directions of the High Court
The appellants are bound by the judgment of the High Court and it is not open to them to go behind that judgment in this appeal
No appeal wag filed against that judgment and it has become final
It is well settled that princi ples of res judicata can be invoked not only in separate subsequent proceedings they also get attracted in subse quent 322 stage of the same proceedings
Once an order made in the course of a proceeding becomes final it would be binding at the subsequent stage of that proceeding
In view of the High Court judgment dated December 18 1964 the Tribunal while passing the order dated September 12 1967 disposing of the revision petition filed by the appellant could not reopen the questions of fact which had been decided by the Assistant Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner
The High Court in our opinion was right in holding in the judgment under appeal that the concurrent findings of fact arrived at by the Assistant Commissioner the Deputy Commissioner and the Tribunal cannot be set aside in the writ petition
The appeal consequently fails and is dismissed but in the cir cumstances with no order as to costs
MR Appeal dismissed


Summary:
The respondent sought possession of some land on the ground that the appellants who were strangers had occupied it
The Assistant Commissioner accepted their claim and directed that the possession of the disputed land be re stored to them
The appellants  appeal was dismissed by the Deputy Commissioner
but their revision petition was accept ed by the Mysore Revenue Appellate Tribunal
The High Court allowed the writ petition of the respondents
direct ing the Tribunal not to reopen the questions of fact in revision
The matter was remanded and the Tribunal then upheld the findings of the Assistant and Deputy Commission ers and dismissed the revision petition
The appellant flied a writ petition which was dismissed by the High Court
Dismissing the appeal the Court HELD 1 The concurrent findings of fact arrived at by the Assistant Commissioner the Deputy Commissioner and the Tribunal cannot be set aside in the writ petition
322 B C 2 Principles of res judicata can be invoked not only in separate subsequent proceedings they can also get at tracted in subsequent stage of the same proceedings
Once an order made in the course of a proceeding becomes final it would be binding at the subsequent stage of that proceed ings
321 H 322 A