IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE M.N.KRISHNAN FRIDAY, THE 7TH JANUARY 2011 / 17TH POUSHA 1932 CRP.No. 941 of 2004() ------------------------------ SM.46/1981 of TALUK LAND BOARD, CHITTUR .................... REVN. PETITIONER/DECLARANT. ----------------------------------------------- ANTONY SWAMY, S/O.SOURI MUTHU, KULARAYANPALAYAM, PALANIYAR PALAYAM P.O. KOZHINJAMPARA, CHITTUR TALUK, PALAKKAD DISTRICT. BY ADV. SRI.H.BADARUDDIN RESPONDENTS 1 TO 3 STATE, 4 AND 5 CLAIMANTS. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. THE TALUK LAND BOARD, CHITTUR. 2. THE TAHSILDAR, CHITTUR. 3. STATE OF KERALA, REP. BY CHIEF SECRETARY TO GOVERNMENT, GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. 4. GURUSWAMY, S/O.MANIKKA MANIAKARAN, PALANIYAR PALAYAM, KOZHINJAMPARA, CHITTUR, PALAKKAD. 5. CHRISTINA EMALDA, D/O.GURUSWAMY, PALANIYAR PALAYAM, KOZHINJAMPARA, CHITTUR, PALAKKAD. R1 TO R3 BY SPL.GOVT. PLEADER MR.M.L. SAJEEVAN. R4 & R5 BY SRI.P.SANTHALINGAM, SENIOR ADVOCATE, ADV. SRI.S.SHARAN. THIS CIVIL REVISION PETITION HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 07/01/2011, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: rs CRP.No. 941 of 2004 ORDER ON I.A.NO.2310/2004 IN C.R.P.NO.941/2004 DISMISSED 07/01/2011. SD/- M.N.KRISHNAN, JUDGE //TRUE COPY// P.S. TO JUDGE rs M.N. KRISHNAN, J. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = C.R.P. NO. 941 OF 2004 = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Dated this the 7th day of January, 2011. O R D E R This revision petition is preferred against the order of the Taluk Land Board, Chittur whereby the Taluk Land Board has directed the declarant to surrender 68 cents of land comprised in old Sy.No.55/1 corresponding to new Sy.No.55/9. It is against that decision the declarant has come up in appeal. 2. Heard the revision petitioner, Government pleader as well as the counsel appearing for other respondents. At the out set I may like to state that the matter appears to be a never ending one and even now I feel that the matter has to be reconsidered in the proper angle by the Taluk Land Board. The litigation started as early as in 1981 and the first order was passed by the Taluk Land Board on 27th CRP NO. 941 of 2004 -:2:- January, 1982. A draft statement was issued holding that the declarant was in possession of 25.48 and ½ acres of land and that as he was only entitled to possession of 12 acres, he was directed to surrender 13.04 and ¼ acres of land. Really the family of the declarant consists of 7 members, husband, wife and five children. The declarant filed objection stating that he had purchased properties after 1.1.70 and that cannot be included. The Taluk Land Board after considering the entire matter directed deletion of 4.90½ acres purchased after 1.1.70 fixed the land at 20.64 acres granted an exemption of 50 cents and directed the declarant to surrender 8.14 acres land i.e.5.17 acres in Sy.No.55/1 and 2.97 acres in Sy.No.46/4. Since the land in Sy.No.55/9 ordered to be taken possession of, O.P.10288/83 was filed before this Court. Subsequently we find that CRP 54/89 and CRP CRP NO. 941 of 2004 -:3:- 1979/00 are filed and ultimately in CRP 1979/00 this Court set aside the order as it was not conversant with the identity of the property. Now after the matter went back the Court had passed an order thereby out of 20.64 acres of land 7.46 acres were excluded as kudikidappu, 50 cents of land were exempted u/s 81 of the K.L.R. Act. The family was directed to maintain 12 acres of land and directed to surrender 68 cents of land in old Sy.No.55/1(New Sy.No.55/9). 3. Contention of the declarant right from the beginning was that prior to 1.1.70 he had only 9.04 acres of land, i.e.4.61 acres in Kozhinjampara village and 4.43 acres of land in Vadakarapathy village. He has also brought to the notice of the Court that he had purchased 4.90 and ½ acres of land in Kozhinjampara village and 2.3 in Vadakarapathy village after 1.1.70. To prove the same he had produced CRP NO. 941 of 2004 -:4:- annexure (E) and annexure (F) to the CRP. He had also filed a worksheet for conversion into standard acres of these entire lands and that 9.04 acres comes to only 6.29 standard acres of land. The subsequent purchase after 1.1.70 comes to 5.62 standard acres of land. So according to him he is only having 16.24 and ½ acres of land equivalent to 9.98 standard acres and as he is entitled to possess 20 acres he does not possess any land excess of the ceiling area. Now unfortunately order of the Tribunal does not reflect different categories of land which constitutes this 20.64 acres of land. When the land for kudikidappu is excluded then only 13.18 acres is available. Out of which 50 cents comes u/s 81 of the KLR Act or in other words there is only an extent of 12.68 acres. As it is a statutory family all the declarant is entitled to possess 12 standard acres of land CRP NO. 941 of 2004 -:5:- which can go upto 20 ordinary acres. The land Board should have applied its mind to find out what will be the standard acre conversion if it is 13.18 acres of land. Since it has not been done and as materials are totally not available before me, the matter has to go back to the Taluk Land Board, i.e. the direction is to convert 13.18 acres which is taken into consideration for fixing the ceiling limit of the declarant into standard acres and find out whether the statutory family possess the land prescribed above under S.82 of the K.L.R. Act. 4. Secondly, right from the inception, the declarant has been maintaining a stand that he is in possession of only 9.04 acres of land which is incorporated in the statement as the lands belonging to him prior to 1.1.70. This Court by earlier orders had made it clear that the Taluk Land Board shall be at liberty to take CRP NO. 941 of 2004 -:6:- any land other than what is shown in the statement i.e. 9.04 acres as excess land. But to my surprise I find it is the land which is not directed to be taken or which is excluded to be taken out, the Taluk Land Board has again directed 68 cents of land to be surrendered from Sy.No.55/1 new Sy.No.55/9 which forms a part of the statement of the declarant as the property belonging to him in Kozhinjampara village. So the Land Board has not attempted to consider the matters directed to be considered. If ultimately Land Board finds that there is excess land it is not to be taken from the lands excluded, i.e. from the 9.04 acres. So that also requires reconsideration. The contention of respondents 4 and 5 also may be considered and whether those lands are to be taken into consideration for fixing the ceiling limit be also considered. So for all these purposes the order under challenge CRP NO. 941 of 2004 -:7:- is set aside and the matter is remitted back to the Taluk Land Board with a direction to consider the points as stated in the previous paragraphs of the judgment. The Taluk Land Board is directed to issue notice to all the parties intimating the date of appearance before the Court. The C.R.P. is disposed of accordingly. M.N. KRISHNAN, JUDGE. ul/-