VAJESINGH SALAMBHAI NAIK & ORS . versus STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.

Citation: [1966] SUPP. 1 S.C.R. 139 · Decided: 01-04-1966 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: K. SUBBA RAO · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed
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Judgment (excerpt)

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139 
VAJESINGH SALAMBHAI NAIK & ORS . 
v. 
STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR. 
April I, 1966 
[K. SUBBA RAO AND V. RAMASWAMI, JJ.] 
Bombay Merged Territories and Areas (Jagirs AboWion) Act, 1953, 
ss. 13, 17(1), 20-Decision of appeals under the Act by Tribunal-
Whether must be on merits in every case-Regulation 21 made under 
the Bombay Revenue Tribunal Act, 1958-Limitation for application 
for restoration of appeals dismissed for non-prot.1ecution. 
The appellants had applied for compensation to the J agir Aboli-
tion Officer under s. 13 of the Bombay Merged Territories and Areas 
(Jagir Abolition) Act, 1953 in respect of their proprietary jagirs. 
Against the orders of the said officer they preferred appeals to the 
Revenue Tribunal which were dismissed for non-prosecution. 
The 
appellants thereupon filed applications for restoration of the appeals 
within 30 days of the receipt of the orders of dismissal of the appeals. 
These applications were dismissed as time-barred, the Tribunal tak-
ing the view that time was to be calculated from the date of the 
urder. The appellants' applications under Art. 227 of the Constitu-
tion to the High Court failed and they came by way of special leave, 
to this Court. It was contended on behalf of the appellant that (i)' the 
Tribunal even while deciding ex-parte had to decide on merits and 
that (ii) the applications for restoration were filed within the time 
prescribed in Regulation 21 made under the Bombay Revenue Tribu-
nal Act, 1958 which applied to the case. 
HELD: (i) In the context of s. 20 and iin view of the express lan-
guage of s. 17(1) of the Jalgirs Abolition Act the Tribunal had no 
power to dismiss the appeals in question for non-prosecution, but it 
was obligatory on its part of decide the appeals on merits and to re-
cord is decision even though there was de(ault on the part of the 
appellant to appear in the appeal. [142 E-FJ 
(ii) The Tribunal also committed an error of law in dismissing 
as time-barred the applications for restoration of the appeals made 
by the appellants. In Regulation 21 made under Bombay Revenue Tri-
bunal Act, 1958 the time prescribed for such applications is thirty 
days from the date of receipt of the Tribunal's order dismissing the 
appeal, and, the appellants had filed their applications within the 
said period. [145 A, BJ 
Regulation 21 lays down the procedure for dealing with appli-
cations for restorati?n _made under Regulation 20 and th" latter Regu-
lation mcludes w1thm its scope all appeals 'decided ex-parte' whether 
on merits or otherwise. It could not therefore be said that Regula-
tion 21 did not apply to the case. [144 HJ 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Appeals by special leave 
from the judgments and orders dated November 27, 1961 of the 
Gujarat High Court in Special Civil Applications Nos. 704 and 707 
of 1961. 
140 
Sl.PRF..ME COL'RT 
l'.":PORT~ 
[1\lt'G) 8l'PP. s.C.R• 
Arun !liagi11/al S11rti, B. Datta and J. B. Dadachanji, for the 
appellants. 
A. K. Sen, M. S. K. Sastri and B. R. G. K. Achar, for the 
respondents. 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
Ramaswami, J, These four consolidated appeals are brought, 
by special leave, against the order of the High Court of Gujarat 
dated November 27, 1961 summarily dismissing four Special Civil 
Applications Nos. 704 to 707 of 1961 which had been filed by the 
appellants under Art. C.27 of the Constitution of India for quash-
ing the order of the Gujarat Revenue Tribunal dated July 18, 1961. 
The appellants had applied for compensation to the Jagir 
Abolition Officer, Baroda under s. 13 of the Bombay Merged 
Territories & Areas (Jagirs Abolition\ Act. 1953, hereinafter refer-
red to as the 'Jagirs Abolition Act', in respect of their proprietary 
jagirs. Against the a\\ ard of compensation made by the Jagir 
Abolition Officer the <:ppcllants preferred appeals under s. 16 of 
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the Jagirs Abolition Ad. Although these appeals were filed before 
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the Revenue. Tribunal at Bombay. the appeals were transferred. on 
the bifurcation of Bombay State. to the Gujarat Revenue Tribunal 
at Ahmedabad. hereinafter called the Tribunal'. All these appeals 
were ultimately dismis·cd by the Tribunal for non-prosecution on 
account of non-appear;ince of the advocate of the appellants. 
Against the dismissal of the appeals for non-prosecution the appel-
lants liled applications for restoration before the Tribunal on May 
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6, 1961. The appellants contended that
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