Uttarakhand High Court
WPMS/478/2025 on 17 February, 2025
2025:UHC:1075
Office N ot e s,
r e por t s, or de r s
or pr oce e dings
SL.
Date or dir e ct ions COURT'S OR JUD GE'S ORD ERS
N o.
a nd Re gist r a r 's
or de r w it h
Signa t ur e s
W PM S N o. 4 7 8 of 2 0 2 5
H on'ble M a noj Kum a r Tiw a r i, J.
Mr. B.D. Pande & Mr. Ravi Joshi, Advocat es for t he pet it ioners.
2. Mr. Deepak Bhat t , Advocat e for t he respondent s.
3. Pet it ioners m oved an applicat ion under Sect ion 34 of Land Revenue Act , 1901 for adding t heir nam es in t he revenue records, in respect of an agricult ural land. I n t heir applicat ion, t hey had alleged t hat t hey have inherit ed t he land from one Sri Dharm anand, t heir predecessor- in- int erest . The said applicat ion filed by pet it ioners was allowed by t he Tehsildar, Haldwani, vide order dat ed 22.02.2019.
4. Respondent s challenged t he said order in an Appeal filed under Sect ion 210 of Land Revenue Act , 1901, which was dism issed by Assist ant Collect or, Haldwani, vide j udgm ent dat ed 22.04.2022. Respondent s t hereaft er challenged t he order passed by Tehsildar as well as Assist ant Collect or in a revision, filed before Board of Revenue, which has been allow ed by t he j udgm ent dat ed 04.09.2024, which is im pugned in t his writ pet it ion.
5. Pet it ioners have challenged t he j udgm ent rendered by Board of Revenue on t he ground t hat finding of fact ret urned by t he Tehsildar could not have been reversed in a rev ision; no reason has been recorded by t he Board of 2025:UHC:1075 Revenue for reversing t he finding ret urned by Tehsildar as well as Assist ant Collect or regarding t he plea of inherit ance, set up by t he pet it ioners.
6. Per cont ra, Mr. Deepak Bhat t , learned counsel appearing for t he respondent s cont ends t hat t he proceedings init iat ed by t he pet it ioners by m oving applicat ion under Sect ion 34 of Land Revenue Act are m isconceived, as disput ed quest ion of t it le cannot be decided in sum m ary proceedings under Sect ion 34 of t he Act . He subm it s t hat only rem edy available t o pet it ioners is t o file a declarat ory suit under Sect ion 229B of UPZA&LR Act . He furt her subm it s t hat pet it ioners have not been able t o dem onst rat e as t o how t he propert y of lat e Dharm anand has been devolved upon t hem , t herefore, learned Board of Revenue is j ust ified in reversing t he finding ret urned by Tehsildar as well as Assist ant Collect or.
7. This Court is not inclined t o int erfere in t he m at t er, as pet it ioners have assert ed t it le over t he land in quest ion in proceedings under Sect ion 34 of t he Land Revenue Act , 1901, which is not perm issible. Sect ion 34 of t he said Act is reproduced below for ready reference: -
" 34. Report of succession or t ransfer of possession.- ( 1) Every person obt aining possession of any land by succession or t ransfer ( ot her t han a succession or t ransfer which has already been recorded under Sect ion 33- A, shall report such succession or t ransfer t o t he Tahsildar of t he Tahsil in which t he land is sit uat e.
( 2) * * * ( 3) * * * ( 4) I f t he person so succeeding, or ot herwise obt aining possession, is a m inor or ot herwise 2025:UHC:1075 disqualified, t he guardian or ot her person who has charge of his propert y shall m ake t he report required by t his sect ion.
( 5) No Revenue Court shall ent ert ain a suit or applicat ion by t he person so succeeding or ot herwise obt aining possession unt il such person has m ade t he report required by t his sect ion."
8. Upon perusal of t he record it is revealed t hat t here is a disput e as regards ident it y of t he land regarding which pet it ioners have claim ed t it le.
9. Respondent s cont end t hat t he land, which belongs t o lat e Dharm anand is a different piece of land and t he land regarding which pet it ioners have assert ed t heir right s belongs t o Hari Dut t , Hari Krishan, Nand Kishore and Ghananand, all sons of lat e Keshav Dut t .
10. Having regard t he fact s and circum st ance of t he case, t he writ pet it ion is disposed of wit h libert y t o pet it ioners t o approach t he appropriat e forum , for declarat ion of t heir t it le. The declarat ory suit filed by pet it ioners shall be decided on m erit s, unt ram m elled by t he observat ions m ade by Board of Revenue in t he im pugned j udgm ent , in view of t he provision cont ained in Sect ion 40- A of t he Land Revenue Act .
( M a n oj Ku m a r Tiw a r i, .J.) 17.02.2025 Navin 2025:UHC:1075