P L D 1959 W (PLP)

S. 27 (2)‑Operation of S. 24 of Act subject to special provisions in Statement of Conditions re : "scheduled" tenancies. (b) Colonization of Government Lands (Punjab) Act (V of 1912), S. 10 (3) and el. 2 of Statement of Conditions re : temporary cultivation leases‑Revenue Board's absolute discretion in respect of selection of tenants‑Cultivation leases obtained by fraudulent suppression in collusion with Patwari of irrigated nature of land Leases justifiably cancelled‑Notice under S. 24 not necessary. Sardar Shah Bukhari for Petitioner. These are 9 revision petitions based on a single crucial issue, and it is proposed to dispose of them by a single order. They have been filed against the order of the Additional Commissioner, Multan, whereby he has confirmed the order of the Collector cancelling the grant of certain State lands to the petitioners for temporary cultivation in connection with the Grow More Food compaign. The facts of the case briefly are that the petitioners applied for allotment of these lands comprising a number of plots as banjar for temporary cultivation ; the Naib Tahsildar made the allotments; subsequently it was discovered that some of the plots in each lot were irrigated plots, which fact had been suppressed by the petitioners. What particularly misled the Naib‑Tahsildar was that the petitioners filed extracts of Patwaris' Jamabandis showing all the plots as banjar. The learned Additional Commissioner, who rejected their appeals by his order dated the 11th July 1958, has thus observed : "it appears that with the connivance of the Patwari he had cheated the Department by showing the entire area as banjar". The learned Additional Commissioner, therefore, held that the Collector's order cancelling the grants was fully justified. The revision applications before me have been mainly argued on the ground that a notice under section 24 of the Colonization of Government Lands Act should have been issued by the Collector before resumption. Every tenancy created under the Grow More Food Scheme is a "Scheduled" tenancy and the question is whether or not it is necessary to issue a notice under section 24 in the case of "scheduled" tenancies. The Deputy Commissioner thinks that under subsection (2) of section 27 of the Act it is not necessary to issue a notice under section 24 and the tenancy can be resumed without issuing any such notice. What exactly subsection (2) of section 27 of the Colonization of Government Lands Act provides is that the operation of section 21, in such cases would be subject to any special provisions in the Statement of Conditions applicable to "scheduled tenancies" so fart as resumption is concerned. In other words, if the statement oft terms and conditions includes any special provision for resumption of any Scheduled tenancy, it will prevail against the requirements, of section 24. These terms and conditions are based, in case: relating to Government lands in the colonies of the old Punjab Province, on the former Punjab Government Notification No. 2664‑C, dated the 22nd September 1944. Resumption is here governed by Condition No. 22, no part of which is applicable to the present case. The petitioners have not committed any breach of conditions within the terms of Nos. (1), (2), (3) and (4). It, therefore, follows that section 24 was applicable to this case and a notice might have been issued by the Collector before resump tion. But this is not the crucial issue in these cases : the more important issue is that of fraud committed in obtaining these allotments. The Collector cancelled the grants on this ground and the Additional Commissioner re‑stressed it. The petitioners represented the lands before the Collector as banjar and, evidently obtained by collusion with the Patwari's misleading extracts from the jamabandis in support of their applications. It is inconceiv able that they did not know that a number of these plots were irrigated. I am, therefore, in agreement with the learned Additional Commissioner's finding that the petitioner obtained these allotments by fraudulent means. Under clause (2) of the F Statement of Conditions governing temporary cultivation leases, vide Punjab Government Notification No. 2664‑C, dated tile 22nd September 1944 read with subsection (3) of section 10 of the Colonization of Government Lands Act, a fraudulent lease of this kind can be cancelled. Clause (2) enables the Financial Commissioner (now the Board of Revenue) to retain an absolute discretion in selection of tenants" and lays emphasis on the fact that no person is entitled as a matter of right to receive a grant under this scheme. They are temporary cultivation leases on year‑to‑year basis and can be terminated by the Financial Com missioner in his discretion. The circumstances of these case, fully justify this action and the revision applications are rejected. The petitioners have requested that they may be permitted together their standing crops and I agree. A. H. Petitions rejected.