Law: Punjab Land Revenue Act (XVII of 1887),

Section: 117

Punjab Land Revenue Act (XVII of 1887)-------   -----S. 117 (2) (c) --Suit filed for possession and not for declaration of title- Revenue Officer constituting himself civil Court and deciding case --Appeal lies to civil Court and not to Controlling Revenue Authority.    ORDER   The previous history of this case need not be gone into for determination of the point under consideration. This is a, partition case under section 117 of the Land Revenue Act in which a question of title had been raised by the plaintiffs-- respondents. The parties ultimately came up to the Board of Revenue and it was decided by me in Revision No. 287 on 7-9-1961 that the plea of title raised was genuine and it was in cumbent on the Revenue Officer either to constitute himself into a civil Court and determine the question or decline to grant the partition until the question has been determined by a competent civil Court. The petition was accordingly accepted and the proceedings remanded for a decision with the above direction. The Revenue Officer thereupon proceeded to constitute himself into a civil Court and directed Momin Khan and others who had made the application for partition to present a regular plaint. However, a suit for possession of the land was brought by them and not for a declaration of title. An objection was raised by the petitioners that keeping in view the nature of relief sought by Momin Khan and others the question in dispute, was cognizable by the civil Courts only and the revenue Court was not competent to give the relief sought. This objection was over-ruled by the trial Court, in appeal and again in revision by the Additional Commissioner, Peshawar. A second revision petition has now been filed.   The only point that has been argued before me is that section 117 of the Land Revenue Act gives to the Revenue Officers only limited powers as civil Courts to determine only a question of title arising in partition proceedings and the Revenue Officer has no powers to take cognizance of a suit for posses sion of land the title of which is in dispute. Reliance, is placed on Naraindas v. Siraj Din and others (A I R 1926 Lah. 238) which follows 100…