TMI Blog2007 (3) TMI 735X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... erein are the owners of land bearing Survey Nos. 3/1, 3/2 and 4 admeasuring 18 acres, 39 cents of Village Kancharapalem, District Visakhapatnam. It was their case that Visakhapatnam Port Trust ('Port Trust' for short) wanted to acquire land for public purpose, namely, for construction of quarters for its employees. The Chairman of the Port Trust, therefore, sent a requisition letter to the District Collector, Visakhapatnam for acquiring land admeasuring 45 acres, 33 cents of Survey Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Kancharapalem Village. Advance possession of the land of the appellants, bearing Survey Nos. 3/1, 3/2 and 4 admeasuring 18 acres, 39 cents was taken over by the Estate Manager of the Port Trust on August 29, 1972 by private negotiations. The State Authorities, thereafter, were requested by the Port Trust Authorities to take appropriate proceedings for acquisition of land under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894. According to the appellants, in the statement recorded on August 29, 1972, Akella Suryanarayana Rao stated that he had handed onver possession of the land to the Estate Manager of the Port Trust. Mr. Akella also stated that there was a dispute regarding land with tenant ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mmissioner to reopen the case and start enquiry. On August 21, 1989, Chairman, Visakhapatnam Port Trust addressed a letter to the Commissioner, Land Reforms Urban Land Ceiling, Government of A.P. categorically stating that land admeasuring 18 acres, 39 cents of Survey Nos. 3/1, 3/2 and 4 of Kancherapalem village had already been taken over by the Port Trust and there was no cause to reopen the case under Section 34 of the Ceiling Act. Once again, the Government approved the proposal for acquisition of land and notification under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act was issued on May 17, 1991. It appears that the proceedings for reopening of the case by invoking Section 34 of the Ceiling Act were initiated. On July 20, 1994, notice was issued to the owners to show cause as to why revisional powers should not be exercised and the order passed by the Special Officer and Competent Authority under the Ceiling Act should not be set aside. It was also stated in the notice that it was brought to the notice of the Government that title to the land was undisputedly with the declarants on the appointed day under the Ceiling Act as the Land Acquisition Proceedings were not concluded by t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... December, 1985 that the correct fact came to the knowledge of the State Authorities from a letter by the Chief Engineer of Port Trust. Hence, the order was taken in suo motu revision under Section 34 of the Ceiling Act. It was further stated that even if the Port Trust Authorities would be deemed to be in possession of land on the day the Ceiling Act came into force, Land Acquisition Proceedings were not concluded and no award was passed. The Port Trust Authorities, in the circumstances, would be in possession of the land for and on behalf of the land-owners and the land was required to be declared surplus and vacant under the Ceiling Act. It was further averred that the High Court ordered inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Mr. Y. Anil Kumar, IPS, Superintendent of Police, CBI, Visakhapatnam submitted a detailed report in the High Court when the Writ Appeals were placed for hearing. Unfortunately, however, the attention of the Court was never invited to the said report which clearly revealed that there was total fraud on the part of the land-owners in collusion with Port Trust Officers as also Officers acting under the Ceiling Act. It was, therefore, submit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... er. It was clear from the evidence on record and various communications that before the proposal was submitted by the Port Trust Authorities for acquisition of land for a public purpose (construction of quarters for its employees), advance possession of land had been taken over by Port Trust Authorities and land-owners were not in possession of the property. The said fact was noted by the Special Officer and Competent Authority, Urband Land Ceiling, Visakhapatnam and an order was passed in May, 1981 that the appellants were 'not surplus land owners'. In or about 1985, however, there appeared to be encroachment over the land and some officers of the Port Trust, with a view to save their skin, wrote a letter on December 19, 1985 that the possession of land had not been handed over to Port Trust Authorities since tenants were occupying the land. The said statement was not correct and could not have been considered for initiating proceedings under the Ceiling Act. It was also submitted by the counsel that suo motu power was sought to be exercised after a decade. As per settled law, revisional powers should be exercised within 'reasonable time'. By no stretch of imaginat ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Ceiling Act so that appropriate consequential action could be taken. No such action, however, was taken. Moreover, it was made clear by the Chief Engineer, Port Trust vide his letter dated December 19, 1985 that actual and physical possession of land was never taken by Port Trust Authorities as it remained with tenants and disputes were going on. The matter, therefore, required detailed investigation. The CBI made an enquiry and the report was submitted by the Police Inspector which revealed startling facts. From the report, it is clear that fraud was committed by the land owners in collusion with officers of the respondents. Criminal proceedings were also initiated and they are pending. It was, therefore, submitted that the High Court was right in recalling its earlier order. Regarding non-applicability of the provisions of the Ceiling Act as the land being garden land and hence agricultural land under the Ceiling Act, it was submitted that it was never the case of the land-owners when proceedings under the Ceiling Act had been initiated that the Act would not apply because the land was used for agriculture. The sole ground put forward by the land- owners was that possessi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... holding that the provisions of the Act would apply to the land and Special Officer and Competent Authority, Urban Land Ceiling was wholly wrong in excluding the land said to have been in possession of the Port Trust Authorities. We are further of the view that the State Government, in the facts and circumstances of the case, was right in exercising revisional jurisdiction under Section 34 of the Act. Mr. Venugopal is indeed right in submitting that even though no period of limitation is prescribed for exercise of revisional jurisdiction by the State Government suo motu, such power must be exercised within a reasonable time [vide State of Gujarat v. Patel Raghav Natha, (1969) 2 SCC 187]. But taking into account the facts and circumstances in their entirety and in particular, a letter of Chief Engineer, Visakhapatnam Port Trust of December 19, 1985, it cannot be said that the power had not been exercised within a reasonable period. It is also pertinent to note that the subsequent development shows as to how some of the Officers of the Port Trust were parties to fraud said to have been committed by land-owners. In this connection, the respondents are right in inviting our attention t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 1 QB 702 : (1956) 2 WLR 502, Lord Denning observed: No judgment of a court, no order of a Minister, can be allowed to stand, if it has been obtained by fraud. In Duchess of Kingstone, Smith's Leading Cases, 13th Edn., p.644, explaining the nature of fraud, de Grey, C.J. stated that though a judgment would be res judicata and not impeachable from within, it might be impeachable from without. In other words, though it is not permissible to show that the court was 'mistaken', it might be shown that it was 'misled'. There is an essential distinction between mistake and trickery. The clear implication of the distinction is that an action to set aside a judgment cannot be brought on the ground that it has been decided wrongly, namely, that on the merits, the decision was one which should not have been rendered, but it can be set aside, if the court was imposed upon or tricked into giving the judgment. It has been said; Fraud and justice never dwell together (fraus et jus nunquam cohabitant); or fraud and deceit ought to benefit none (fraus et dolus nemini patrocinari debent). Fraud may be defined as an act of deliberate deception with the design of securing ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... levant to the litigation. If he withholds a vital document in order to gain advantage on the other side then he would he guilty of playing fraud on the court as well as on the opposite party . The Court concluded: The principle of 'finality of litigation' cannot be pressed to the extent of such an absurdity that it becomes an engine of fraud in the hands of dishonest litigants . In Indian Bank v. Satyam Fibres (India) Pvt. Ltd., (1996) 5 SCC 550 : JT 1996 (7) SC 135, referring to Lazarus Estates and Smith v. East Elloe Rural District Council, 1956 AC 336 : (1956) 1 All ER 855 : (1956) 2 WLR 888, this Court stated; The judiciary in India also possesses inherent power, specially under Section 151 C.P.C., to recall its judgment or order if it is obtained by Fraud on Court. In the case of fraud on a party to the suit or proceedings, the Court may direct the affected party to file a separate suit for setting aside the Decree obtained by fraud. Inherent powers are powers which are resident in all courts, especially of superior jurisdiction. These powers spring not from legislation but from the nature and the Constitution of the Tribunals or Courts themselves so as to e ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ance to the plea that the application for recall is not legally maintainable. Therefore, we strongly feel that the claim must be allowed to be resisted, on the ground of fraud now alleged by the Insurance Company. If we fail to afford to the Insurance Company an opportunity to substantiate their contentions it might certainly lead to serious miscarriage of justice . (emphasis supplied) Mr. Venugopal, no doubt, contended that when the order passed by the earlier Division Bench was not interfered with by this Court and SLPs were dismissed, it was not open to the High Court thereafter to entertain recall-applications and grant the relief of recalling of earlier orders. According to him, such an exercise of power was unlawful and abuse of process of law. In this connection, our attention has been invited by the learned counsel to a decision of this Court in Abbai Maligai Partnership Firm Anr. v. K. Santhakumaran Ors., (1998) 7 SCC 386 : JT 1998 (6) SC 396. In that case, after dismissal of Special Leave Petition by this Court, review petition was entertained by the High Court and earlier judgment was recalled. When the matter reached this Court, setting aside the order passed by ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... inciples: (i) Where an appeal or revision is provided against an order passed by a court, tribunal or any other authority before superior forum and such superior forum modifies, reverses or affirms the decision put in issue before it, the decision by the subordinate forum merges in the decision by the superior forum and it is the latter which subsists, remains operative and is capable of enforcement in the eye of law. (ii) The jurisdiction conferred by Article 136 of the Constitution is divisible into two stages. First stage is upto the disposal of prayer for special leave to file an appeal. The second stage commences if and when the leave to appeal is granted and special leave petition is converted into an appeal. (iii) Doctrine of merger is not a doctrine of universal or unlimited application. It will depend on the nature of jurisdiction exercised by the superior forum and the content or subject-matter of challenge laid or capable of being laid shall be determinative of the applicability of merger. The superior jurisdiction should be capable of reversing, modifying or affirming the order put in issue before it. Under Article 136 of the Constitution the Supreme Court may ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... der the doctrine of merger. According to the Court, a careful reading of Abbai Maligai brings out the correct statement of law and fortifies us in taking the view as taken. [see also S. Shanmugavel Nadar v. State of T.N. Anr., (2002) 8 SCC 361 : JT 2002 (7) SCC 568]. The matter can be looked at from a different angle as well. Suppose, a case is decided by a competent Court of Law after hearing the parties and an order is passed in favour of the applicant/plaintiff which is upheld by all the courts including the final Court. Let us also think of a case where this Court does not dismiss Special Leave Petition but after granting leave decides the appeal finally by recording reasons. Such order can truly be said to be a judgment to which Article 141 of the Constitution applies. Likewise, the doctrine of merger also gets attracted. All orders passed by the courts/authorities below, therefore, merge in the judgment of this Court and after such judgment, it is not open to any party to the judgment to approach any court or authority to review, recall or reconsider the order. The above principle, however, is subject to exception of fraud. Once it is established that the order was obt ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ion of the land had already been handed over to Port Trust Authorities in 1972 and hence the land cannot become subject matter of the Ceiling Act. In view of the above fact, in our opinion, the High Court was right in passing the impugned order directing the authorities to consider all aspects and pass an appropriate order in accordance with law. Last but not the least. We are exercising jurisdiction under Article 136 of the Constitution. It is discretionary and equitable in nature.? Clause (1) of the said Article confers very wide and extensive powers on this Court to grant special leave to appeal against any judgment, decree, determination, sentence or order in any cause or matter passed or made by any Court or Tribunal in India. The Article commences with a non- obstante clause, Notwithstanding anything in this Chapter (i.e. Chapter IV of Part V). These words are of overriding effect and clearly indicate the intention of the Framers of the Constitution that it is a special jurisdiction and a residuary power unfettered by any statute or other provisions of Chapter IV of Part V of the Constitution. It is extraordinary in its amplitude. Its limit, when it chases injustice, is the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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