STATE OF HARYANA AND ANR. versus JIWAN SINGH

Citation: [1976] 2 S.C.R. 210 · Decided: 08-10-1975 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: V.R. KRISHNA IYER · Disposal: Dismissed

Judgment (excerpt)

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210 
STATE OF HARYANA AND ANR. 
v. 
JIWAN SINGH 
October 8, 1975 
[V. R. KRISHNA IYER AND A. C. GUPTA, JJ.] 
Punjab Security of Land Tenures Act, 1953-Proviso (ii) (a) to Section 2(3) 
-Maximum permissible area for a displaced person in terms of Srandard Acres 
dr ordinary acres, determination of-Meaning of the phrase ''as the case may 
be''. 
The respondent, a displaced person from Pakistan was allotted 55-80 Stand-
ard Acres of land in lien of the land left by him in Pakistan. 
While deter-
mining the surplus area, the' appellant State inte.preting the 
phrase 
"as the 
case may be" in proviso (ii)(a) to Section 2(3) of the Punjab Security of 
Land Tenures Act, 1953, left with the respondent 100 ordinary acres equival-
ent to 29'.81 Standard Acres and treated 25.99 standard acres equivalent to 
78.57 ordinary acres as surplus. The respondent preferred an appeal con-
tending that the surplus should be 5.80 standard acres on a true interpretation 
of the proviso, which failed. 
The revision before the Financial Commissioner 
met with the same fate. 
The contention of the respondent was upheld by the 
High Court, while allowing the Writ Petition filed by him, The Letters Patent 
Appeal filed by the State was dismissed. 
On an appeal by special leave, the 
Court, while dismissing it, 
HELD : (i) The contention that the words "as the case may be" in proviso 
(ii)(a) to section 2(3), gives a discretion to the authorities to rletermine the 
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permissible area either in standard or in ordinary acres is not correct. 
[212-B-~] 
-t-· 
(ii) On a plain reading, proviso (ii)(a) indicates that where the 
land 
allotted to a displaced person was in standard acres and its area exceeded 50 
standard acres, the permissible area would be 50 standard acres, and where 
the land was allotted not in standard acres, the permissible area would be 100 
ordinary acres. 
The 
nature of the original 
allotment-whether it was 
in 
standard acres or in ordinary ac~·es-is the determinating factor. 
[212-C-D] 
(iii) The meaning given to proviso (ii)(a) by the Full Bench 
of 
the 
Punjab & Haryana High Court, in Khan Chand v. State of Punjab A.I.R. 1%6 
Punjab 423, is correct. 
It is only construed this way that the words "as the 
case may be" acquire a significance, otherwise they would be mere surplusage. 
[212-D-E,] 
Khan Chand v. State of Punjab, A.I.R. 1966 Punjab 423, approved, 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 852 of 1968. 
Appeal by Special Leave from the Judgment and Order dated the 
9th August, 1967 of the Punjab & Haryana High Court in LP. A. No. 
199/67. 
Naunit Lal and R. N. Sachthey for the Appellants. 
Madan Bhatia for Respondent. 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
GUPTA, J. 
The respondent Jiwan Singh who is a displaced person 
from Pakistan was allotted 55.80 standard acres of land in village Neza 
.Dali Kalan in Sirsa· Tehsil of Hissar District in lieu of the land left by 
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HARYANA v. JIWAN SINGH (Gupta, !.) 
211 
him in Pakistan; 
The second appellant, Collector Surplus .Area, Sirsa, 
in determining the surplus area. under the Punjab Security of Land 
Tenures Act 1953 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) left only 100 
ordinary acr~s with the respondent as hi~ permissible ar~a and declared 
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the rest of the land measuring 78.57 ordmary acres, eqUI~'alent to 25.99 
standard acres, as surplus. Permissible Area as defined m sec. 2(3) of 
the Act is as follows : 
" "Permissible area" in relation to a land owner o.r a 
tenant means thirty standard acres and where such thlfty 
stand~rd acres on being converted into ordinary acres exceed 
sixty acres, such six1J,y acres : 
Provided that-
(i) no area under an orchard at the commencement of this 
Act, ·shall be taken into account in computing the permis-
sible area: 
(ii) for a displaced person-
( a) who has been allptted land in excess of fifty standard 
· acres, the permissible area shall be fifty standard 
acres or one hundred ordinary acres, as the case 
may be. 
(b) who has been allotted land in excess of tl)irty stan-
dard acres, but less than fifty standard acres, the 
permissible area shall be equal to his allotted area. 
( c) who has been allotted land less than thirty standard 
acres, the permissible area shall be thirty standard 
acres, including any other land or part thereof, if 
any, that he owns in addition." 
'rhere is an explanation to this definition which is not relevant for . the 
present purpose. 
Surplus Are

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