Summarize the following court judgment. Civil Appeal No. 144 of 1956. Appeal by special leave from the judgment and order dated the 9th July	 1955	 of the former Madhya Bharat High Court in Civil Misc. Case No. 27 of 1954. M. A. Khan and Ratanaparkhi	 for the appellant. section N. Bindra and R. H. Dhebar	 for the respondent. October 30. The following Judgment of the Court was delivered by IMAM J. This is an appeal by special leave against the order of the Madhya Bharat High Court dated July 9	 1955	 rejecting an application filed by the appellant under article 226 of the Constitution. According to the appellant	 his father Habibullah died more than twenty years ago leaving behind the appellant and his brother Bashirullah as his sole heirs. Habibullah	 on his death	 left immovable properties in the city of Indore. Bashirullah	 who was unmarried	 went mad in 1942 and died in 1950 without any issue. On his death	 the appellant became the sole owner of all the properties left by his father Habibullah. On September 21	 1954	 the respondent purported to serve on the appellant a notice tinder section 7 of the (XXXI of 1950)	 hereinafter referred to as the Act. This notice was not served on him and was never pasted on the property concerned. Service of the notice was	 according to the appellant	 not proper and therefore illegal. The appellant desiring to know on what material the notice under section 7 of the Act was issued against him applied on October 1	 1954	 for copies of the record and the evidence in the possession of the respondent on the basis of which he formed the opinion that Bashirullah	 at his death	 had left behind a son Iqbal and a wife Kamrunnissa who had migrated to Pakistan in consequence of which the estate inherited by them from Bashirullah became evacuee property. The application was rejected by the respondent. 818 The appellant filed a petition under article 226 of the Constitution in the Madhya Bharat High Court	 which was dismissed by that Court. The High Court was of the opinion that two questions fell to be decided in the proceedings before it (I) was the notice dated September 21	 1954	 issued by the respondent under section 7 of the Act	 illegal and (2) was the refusal of the respondent to supply to the appellant copies of the record and the evidence in possession of the respondent prior to the issue of notice under section 7 of the Act unlawful? Both these questions were decided against the appellant. The notice dated September 21	 1954	 was issued under section 7 of the Act in accordance with the Rules framed under section 56 of the Act. Under section 7 of the Act the notice has to be given to persons interested in the prescribed manner. Rule 6 of the Rules framed under the Act requires the notice to be in Form I to be served on persons interested in the property proposed to be declared evacuee property. We have compared the notice issued in the present case with Form I of the Rules and can find no difference between them in essential particulars. It was said that the notice in the present case does not state the grounds upon which the property concerned was proposed to be declared evacuee property and Iqbal and Kamrunnissa evacuees. This contention is without foundation because the notice in question definitely states under the heading "Grounds" that Iqbal and Kamrunnissa migrated to Pakistan after March 1	 1947	 on account of the creation of the Dominions. The notice specifies with sufficient clarity the particulars of the property proposed to be declared evacuee property. There was no reliable material to prove the assertion of the appellant that the notice was not properly served. We are	 accordingly	 of the opinion that the notice in question has not been proved to be illegal on account of contravention of any of the provisions of the Act or the Rules made thereunder. It was next contended that there was no material before the respondent to justify his issuing the notice and	 therefore	 the notice was issued without 819 jurisdiction. Section 7 of the Act provides that where the Custodian is of the opinion that any property is an evacuee property within the meaning of the Act he may	 after causing notice thereof to be given in the prescribed manner to the persons interested and after holding such enquiry in the matter	 as the circumstances of the case permitted	 pass an order declaring any such property to be evacuee property. It is for the Custodian to form his opinion on such material	 as was before him	 and on such information which he possessed. The notice which he issued was in Form I of the Rules framed under the Act and it stated clearly that there was credible information in possession of the respondent that lqbal and Kamrunnissa were evacuees and that the property specified in the notice was evacuee property. It was for the respondent to decide . whether	 on the information in his possession	 he should issue a notice under section 7 of the Act. It is not for this Court or any other Court to determine whether the information in possession of the respondent was adequate to justify the issuing of the notice. The contention on behalf of the appellant in this respect cannot be supported on any valid ground. It was next contended on behalf of the appellant that when bona fides of the respondent bad been challenged in the High Court	 that Court should have sent for the record and seen for itself as to whether there was any justification for the issue of the notice under section 7 of the Act. In our opinion	 this contention cannot prevail as there is no material on the record to justify the accusation that the respondent acted with malafides in issuing the notice. The respondent was free to believe or not to believe the information in his possession. The mere issue of a notice would not make the persons named therein evacuees or the property mentioned therein evacuee property. That stage could only be reached after the notice had been issued and after the holding of such enquiry	 as the circumstances of the case permitted	 when an order declaring the property to be evacuee property could be made in respect of a person who was an evacuee	 as defined in 104 820 the Act. In our opinion	 it was unnecessary for	 the High Court to have called for the record and to have examined it for itself in order to ascertain whether the respondent was justified in issuing the notice. We have now to consider whether the application for copies filed by the appellant was improperly rejected. On his behalf	 it was contended that the application for copies should have been allowed as section 7 of the Act contemplates only one proceeding	 from the commencement to the end	 including the stage prior to the issue of notice	 regarding the declaration of any property as evacuee property and that that proceeding is a judicial proceeding. Since the appel lant was a party to the proceedings under section 7 of the Act	 he was entitled to have copies of the record including the evidence which constituted the proceedings. Reliance was placed on section 49 of the Act	 which states that all records prepared or registers maintained under the Act shall be deemed to be public documents within the meaning of the Indian Evidence Act and shall be presumed to be genuine until the contrary is proved. Reference was also made to section 45 of the Act which states that for the purpose of holding an enquiry under the Act	 the Custodian shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure when trying a suit	 in respect of the following matters: (a) enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath; (b) compelling the discovery and production of documents; (c) any prescribed matter; and the enquiry by the Custodian shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code and the Custodian shall be deemed to be a court within the meaning of sections 480 and 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. There can be little doubt that the Custodian	 while holding an enquiry under section 7 of the Act is acting in a judicial capacity and that	 by virtue of Rule 35 of the Rules	 any party to the enquiry would be entitled to copies of any application	 821 objection	 petition	 affidavit	 or statement made by a party or a witness and any other document. He would also be entitled to copies of the final original order passed by the Custodian or an order passed in appeal	 revision or review. The position	 however	 is quite different with respect to the material in possession of the Custodian on which he formed his opinion and on which he issued notice under section 7	 because at that stage he was not holding an enquiry and was	 therefore	 not acting in a judicial capacity. It is a misconception of the entire scheme of the Act to suppose that an enquiry under section 7 of the Act and the issuing of a notice previous to the holding of that enquiry is a single proceeding. When issuing a	 notice under section 7 the Custodian merely has some credible information which	 in his opinion	 justifies him in issuing it and thereafter to enquire into the matter before making a declaration that the property is evacuee property. That information may	 after the enquiry has been concluded	 turn out to be entirely insufficient for making the required declaration. In our opinion	 there are two stages in the process whereby any property can be declared to be evacuee property under the Act. One is the issuing of the notice to persons interested and the other an enquiry under section 7 of the Act. The proceedings commence after the issue of a notice and not previous to it. At the second stage	 a party to the proceedings would be entitled to copies of the record and the evidence from the stage of the issuing of the notice until the conclusion of the enquiry but not previous to the issue of the notice. In our opinion	 the appellant would have been well advised to have responded to the notice issued to him and assisted the respondent in holding the enquiry. The respondent would have had to consider all the material before him at the enquiry before he declared the property in question evacuee property. If the material in the enquiry was insufficient to justify such a declaration	 the appellant had the right of appeal against the order of the respondent. In our opinion	 the application of the respondent for copies was rightly rejected by the respondent as he was not	 822 entitled to copies of the material before the respondent previous to the issuing of the notice under section 7 of the Act. The appeal	 accordingly	 fails and is dismissed with costs. Appeal dismissed.

The appellant and his brother owned certain properties inherited from their father. The brother died and the appellant claimed to have become the sole heir. The respondent issued a notice under section 7 of the 	 in respect of the share of the brother on the ground that the brother had left a widow and a son who had migrated to Pakistan. The appellant	 desiring to know on what materials the notice was issued	 applied for copies of the materials on the basis of which he respondent had formed his opinion. The application was rejected by the respondent. The appellant filed a petition under article 226 of the Constitution in the High Court which was also dismissed. The appellant obtained special leave and contended that the notice was issued without jurisdiction as there was no material before the respondent to justify his issuing of the notice and that the application for the copies had been improperly ejected by the respondent. Held	 that it was for the Custodian to form his opinion on such material as was before him and on such information which he possessed. It is not for any Court to determine whether the information in the possession of the Custodian was adequate to justify the issue of a notice under section 7 of the Act: Held further	 that the application for copies had been rightly rejected. There are two stages in the process whereby any property can be declared to be evacuee property under the Act. One is the issuing of the notice to persons interested and the other is the inquiry under section 7. The proceedings commence after issue of the notice and not prior to it. A party to the proceedings will be entitled to copies of the record and evidence from the stage of 817 the issuing of the notice until the conclusion of the enquiry but not previous to the issue of the notice.