Case: Sriram Narayan Medhi Vs. The State of Maharashtra

2. The State of Bombay undertook legislation in furtherance of its policy of social welfare and to give effect to agrarian reform. The parent Act was passed by the Bombay State Legislature in order to amend the law which governed the relationship between the landlord and tenants of agricultural lands, the object sought to be achieved being as indicated in its preamble that "on account of the neglect of a landholder or disputes between the landlord and his tenants, the cultivation of his estate has as a result suffered or for the purposes of improving the economic and social conditions of peasant or ensuring the full and efficient use of land for agriculture, it is expedient to assume management of estates held by the landholders and to regulate and impose restrictions on transfer of agricultural lands, dwelling houses, sites and lands appurtenant thereto belonging to or occupied by agriculturists, agricultural labourers and artisans in the Province of Bombay and to make provision for certain other purposes."3. By the Constitution First Amendment Act 1951 the parent Act was included in the Ninth Schedule and came within the purview of Article 31-B of the Constitution. In 1956 the State Legislature in order to implement the directive principles of the State Policy set out in Arts. 38 and 39 of the Constitution of India by seeking to promote the welfare of the tenants, the landless peasants and labourers to enable them to acquire land and with a view to bring about equitable distribution of ownership of land, passed the amendment Act which received the assent of the President on March 16, 1956. This Act made further changes in the relationship of landlord and tenants which were more drastic. The main effect of the amendments of Sections 32 to 32-H was that on the 1st April 57 (hereinafter referred to as the tillers day) every tenant was, subject to the other provisions deemed to have purchased from his landlord free of all encumbrances subsisting thereon, on the said day the land held by him as a tenant subject to certain conditions (vide Section 32). The tenant under Section 32-A was deemed to have purchased the land up to the ceiling area. It was further provided by Section 32-B that if a tenant held the land partly as owner and partly as tenant, but the area of the land held by him as owner is equal to or exceeds the ceiling area he shall not be deemed to have purchased the land held by him as a tenant under Section 32.4. Section 32-E provided that the balance of any land after the purchase by the tenant under Section 32 shall be disposed of in the manner laid down in Sec. 15 as if it were land surrendered by the tenant. Section 32-F further provided that in the case of disabled landholders namely minors, widows or persons subject to any mental or physical disability or where the tenants are equally disabled as aforesaid or where they are members of the Armed Forces, the tillers day was postponed by one year after the cessation of disability.5. As a result of the Amendment Act, on the 1st of April, 1957 the relationship of landlord and tenant came to an end, the landholder ceased to be a tenure holder and the title thereto was vested in the tenants defeasible only on certain specified contingencies. The relationship of landholder and tenant was thus transformed into a relationship of a creditor and debtor, the erstwhile landlord being entitled only to recover the price fixed under the provisions of the Amendment Act in the manner provided therein under Section 32-G read with S. 32-H, the price which was to be paid by the tenant was to be determined by the tribunal as soon as may be after the tillers day and in the manner provided thereunder subject however to the amount so determined not being less than 20 times and not more than 200 times of the assessment. An appeal against the decision of the Tribunal was provided to the State Government under Section 32-J.6. The mode of payment by the tenant of the price fixed by the Tribunal is prescribed under Section 32-K which shall be payable in annual instalments not exceeding 12, with simple interest at 4 1/2% per annual, on or before the said dates as may be prescribed by the Tribunal and the tribunal shall direct that the amount deposited in lumpsum or the amount of instalments deposited shall be paid to the former landlord. The landlord however did not have the right to recover the amount by recourse to a Court of law. The only way in which he could recover it if the instalments were not duly paid by the tenant voluntarily was by an application to the concerned authorities under the Revenue Recovery Act to recover it as arrears of land revenue (Section 32-L) which provision it may be stated was subsequently deleted by the impugned Act under Section 32-M. On the payment of the price either in lumpsum or of the last instalment of such price the tribunal was required to issue a certificate in the prescribed form to the tenant purchaser in respect of the land, which certificate shall be the conclusive evidence of purchase. If the tenant fails to pay the lumpsum within the period prescribed for, or is at any time in arrears of four instalments the purchase was to be ineffective and the land was to be put at the disposal of the Collector and any amount deposited by such tenant towards the price of the land was to be refunded to him. It is important to note that Section 32-P provides that if the tenant fails to exercise his right to purchase or the sale becomes ineffective on account of default of payment of purchase price the tenant shall be evicted and the land shall be surrendered to the former landlord. Sections 32-Q and 32-R provide that the amount of purchase price was to be applied towards the satisfaction of debts and the purchaser was to be evicted from the land purchased by him as aforesaid if he fails to cultivate the land personally.7. The Amendment Act was challenged by a petition under Article 32 but this Court held that it is protected by Article 31-A of the Constitution and is therefore valid.

Reasoning: We do not therefore think that the impugned Act has in anyway affected the main purpose of the Act or the object which it seeks to achieve nor do the amendments effected thereby take the provisions out of the protection given to it under Article 31-A of the Constitution.15.What fell for determination in the case referred to was whether as a result of the provisions of the Bombay Land Tenure Abolition Laws (Amendment) Act 1958, particularly under Sections 3 and 4 read with Section 6 thereof certain non permanent tenants were deemed to have become permanent tenants as from the commencement of the Bombay Taluqdari Tenure Abolition Act 1949 and thereby became entitled to acquire the tenure on payment of 6 times the assessment or 6 times the rent instead of at least the minimum of 20 times to 200 times the assessment which right infringed the fundamental right of the landlord to acquire hold and dispose of property. This result it was contended had substantially deprived the petitioners of the right which they acquired on the tillers day by reason of the provisions contained in Section 32 and other provisions in the parent Act as amended from time to time. The majority held that the provisions of Sections 3, 4 and 6 of the Bombay Land Tenure Abolition Laws (Amendment) Act 1958 in so far as they deemed some tenants as permanent tenants in possession of Taluqdari land were unconstitutional and void in that under the guise of changing the definition of a permanent tenant and changing a rule of evidence, it really reduced the purchase price that the petitioners were entitled to receive from some of their tenants on the tillers day under Section 32-H of the parent Act.