PADRAUNA RAJKRISHNA SUGAR WORKS LTD. & ORS. versus LAND REFORMS COMMISSIONER, U.P. & . ORS.

Citation: [1969] 3 S.C.R. 468 · Decided: 31-01-1969 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: J.C. SHAH · Disposal: Dismissed
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Judgment (excerpt)

PADRAUNA RAJKRISHNA SUGAR WORKS LTD. & ORS. 
A 
v. 
LAND REFORMS COMMISSIONER, U.P. & . ORS. 
January 31, 1969 
(J. C. SHAH, V. RAMASWAMI AND A. N. GROVER, JJ.J 
B 
U.P. Zamindari Abolition & Land Reforms Act (U.P, I of 1951), ss. 
279 and 286---Dues under other statutes recoverable as arrears of land 
revenue-Whether restrictions under ss. 279 and 286(1) applicable. 
The amount of dues under the Indian Income-tax Act, 1922 the U.P. 
Sugar Factories Control Act. 
1938 and the. Co-operative Societies 
Act, 
1912 were 'fecoverab!e as arrears of land 
revenue. 
Section 
286( 1) of 
the U.P. Zamindari Abolition & Land Reforms Act provides that if any 
arrears of ]and revenue could not be recovered by any of the processes 
mentioned in els. (a) to (e) of s. 279, the Collector may realise the same 
by attachment and sale of the interests o'f the defaulter in any other im-
movable property of the defaulter, and s. 286(2) provided that money 
recoverable as arrears of land revenue, may be 
recovered by process 
"under this section" from any immovable property of the defaulter. 
As 
the appellant-company was unable to meet its liabilities in 
respect of 
income.tax dues, sugar cess and the amount due for cane supplied to it, 
the immovable property o'f the company were sold to meet the dues. The 
appellant challenged the sale contending that (i) the immovable property 
of the company could be attached and sold only after the processes pres-
cri·bed in els. (a) to (e) of s. 279 i.e. by the sale of movable properties 
y.·ere resorted to; (ii} the sale was illegal or irregular as the CoUector 
ignored the intimation of the Income-tax Officer staying the sale for re-
covery of income-tax; and (iii) the appellant, was prevented from raising 
funds 'for making the deposit os provided by r. 285H (of the rules framed 
under the Act) for .setting aside the sale as the purchaser was appointed 
as the Authorised Controller and put in possession of all the properties of 
the appellant. Dismissing the appeal this Court, 
HELD : (i) Power to recover arrears of land revenue from a defaulter 
is governed by the processes mentioned in els. (a) to (e) of s. 279 of the 
Act and s. 286( I) places certain restrictions upon the power o'f the Collec-
tor to recover land revenue by attachment and sale of lands other than 
the holdin~ in respect of which the land revenue is due. But the restric-
tions on the power of the Collector operated only when land revenue is 
in arrears. 
Re~trictions, if any, upon the power of the Collector to re· 
cover dues under statutes, 
as a'rrears of land 
revenue arise. from 
the 
statute \\•hich is the source of the liabi1ity and not from the U.P. Zamin-
dari Abolition & T~and Re'forms Act, which merely sets out the processes 
for recovery of the dues. 
To hold that sub-s. (2) of s. 2R6 requires the 
CoJiector in the first instance to recover out of the movable property or 
by arrest and detention of the defaulter before immovable property of the 
defaulter is attached and sold is to amend the substantive provisions 0[ 
the Acts under which the liability for money due is recoverable as land 
revenue. 
For instance. under s. 46 of the Income-tax Act. 1922. the 
powers exercisable by the CoIIecto'r in recovering arrears of income-tax, 
which are recover1bie a" arrears of land revenue are not re!'tricted to the 
Land Revenue Code; the Collector is entitled to exercise all the powers of 
a Civil Court for the purpose of recovery of an amount due under a decree 
under the Code o'f (:ivil PrQl'eC:ure, and the Code of CiVJl Proctdure im-
c 
D 
E 
F 
G 
fl 
PAI>MUNA V, COMMISSIONER (Shah, 1.) 
469 
A . poses no obligations to recover the dues by sale of movables or by arrest 
and detention of the defaulter before immovable property may be attach· 
ed. The provisions of the Act, which authorise 
recovery of sums 
of 
money as arrears of land revenue, do not require the Collector to follow 
any sequence df the processes for recovery; it is competent to the Collec-
tor to resort to any process prescribed by s. 279 in aid of recovery of 
the .dues which are recoverable as arrears of land revenue. [473 H-474 
B 
D; 475 HJ 
(ii) The sale was not illegal or irregular for the reason that the Collec-
tor isnored the intimation of the Income-tax Officer staying the sale for 
recovery of income-tax dues. The immovable property could have been 
put up for sale for recovery df sugar cane cess and the cane price which 
were many times mor
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