Holding

Section 64‑C does not oust the civil court’s jurisdiction to adjudicate the nature of the land; the civil court may entertain the suit for declaration and injunction.

Summary

The State of Tamil Nadu sought to bar a civil suit filed by a religious Math seeking declaration of title and an injunction over 3.55 acres of land, arguing that the nature of the land (ryoti vs. poromboke) had already been decided by the Settlement Officer under section 11 of the Tamil Nadu Estates (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, 1948 and that section 64‑C gave that decision finality, thereby ousting civil court jurisdiction. The Supreme Court examined the scheme of the Act, the limited powers of the Settlement Officer under section 11, and the principles from Dhulabhai and Secretary of State cases. It held that section 64‑C confers finality only for purposes of the Act and does not preclude a civil court from adjudicating the nature of the land when the suit seeks relief such as injunction, which the Settlement Officer cannot grant. Consequently, the civil court’s jurisdiction was not ousted. The appeals by the State were dismissed.

Issues considered

Whether section 64‑C of the Tamil Nadu Estates (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, 1948 bars a civil court from determining the nature of land (ryoti versus poromboke) in a suit for declaration and injunction.
Whether the Settlement Officer’s decision under section 11 is final and exclusive on the question of land character.

Legislation cited

Tamil Nadu Estate Lands Act, 1908s. 3(15), s. 3(16)(a), s. 3(16)(b), s. 3(16)(c)
Tamil Nadu Estates (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, 1948s. 11, s. 12, s. 13, s. 14, s. 15, s. 16, s. 3(d), s. 5(2), s. 64-C, s. 7(c), s. 7(d)
Tamil Nadu Irrigation Cess Act, 1865
Tamil Nadu Revenue Recovery Act, 1864

Subjects

civil court jurisdictionouster of jurisdictionsection 64-Cryotwari pattaland classificationporombokeinjunctiontitle disputerevenue law

Judgment

63
STATE OF TAMIL NADU ETC.
A
v.

RAMALINGA SAMIGAL MADAM ETC.

May 1, 1985
B
[V,D, TULZAPURKAR AND V. KHALID, JJ.J

Jurisdiction of the civil court when and under what circumstances barred
-Civil Court's jurisdiction to determine the nature of the land in respect where of
a Ryot has sought a Ryotwari Patta under section 11 of the Tamil Nadu Estates
(Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act, 1948 is ousted or barred under C
section 64-C of that Act, read with section 3(16)(a), (b) and (c) of the Tamil Nadu
Estate Lands Act.

Under the Tamil Nadu Estates' (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari)
Act, 1948, estates of several Zamindars including the Sivaganga Estates
and Ramnad Zamindari estates were abolished and vested with the Government. D
In Civil Appeal No. 474of1971, the respondent religious Math, in respect of
the land admeasuring 3.55 acres being a portion of survey No. 114 obtained
from the erstwhile Zamindar of Sivaganga und~r an (Order of Assignment
(Ex. A-1) dated 29.1.1938 Kudi right (i.e. Right to cultivate), subject to the
payment of a nominal nuzzur of Re. 1 per acre and an annual rent of Re. 1
per acre beside cesses and a Teervapat Cowie Patta issued in favour of its
trustee Sutha Chaitnya Swamigal. After the abolition of the Zarnindari estates, E
the religious Math applied on 25.11.53 for Ryotwari Patta in respect of the
said 1and to the Assistant Settlement Officer, who, without reference to the
respondent passed an order (Ex. B-4) on 25.6.54 that Survey No. 114 was not
a ryoti land on the notified date but had been registered as Proromboke (village
communal land) and, therefore, no one was entitled to Ryotwari Patta in
respect of it. Aggrieved by the order, the respondent filed a Civil Suit o.S.
No. 184 of 1959 in the Court of District Munsiff at Manamadurai for decla- F
ration of its title on the basis of its long and uninterrupted possession prior to
1938 as also under Ex. A-1 issued to it by the Zamindar and right to continue
in possession and enjoyment of the suit land, subject to payment of Ryotwari
or other cess to. be imposed by Government without any interference from the
Government. The appellant State resisted the suit on merits by contending
that the suit land was communal land and that the assignment or grant by the G
Zamindar in favour of plaintiff-Madam was invalid as well as by raising a
technical plea that the decision of the Additional Settlement Officer that the
suit Iand was poromboke and not ryoti land was final and the Civil Court's
jurisdiction to decide that question was barred under section 64-C of the
Act.
H
The Trial Court as well as the Sub Judge ln appeal accepted the res-
pondent's case on merits by holding that the suit land was a ryoti land and
that the assignment of Kudi right therein by the Zamindar in respondent's
64 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1985] SUPPL. s.c.R.

favour was valid and negativing the technical plea of want of jurisdiction
A decreed the suit by granting the necessary declaration and injunction protecting
respondent's pos5ession and enjoyment of the suit land. In second appeal
preferred by the State of Ta1r.ii Nadu to the High Court the plea of lack of
jurisdiction in the light of section 64~C of the Act was referred to a Division
Bench who negatived the contention and dismissed the appeal. The Division
Bench took the view that there was no provision under section 11 read with
proviso to cl. (d) of section 3 of the Act for the ascertainment of the character
B of the land {whether it was ryoti land or communal land) and that the decision
of the Settlement Officer whether the land is ryoti or not is a11 incidental one
merely for the purpose of granting the Ryotwari Patta and Civil Court'sjuris·
diction to adjudicate upon the nature of the land when that aspect is specifically
put in issue, is not taken away under section 64-C of the Act and that the
respondent's suit was not For obtaining a ryotwari patta in its favour (which
c matter lay within the powers and jurisdiction of the Settlement Officer) but the
suit was for injunction restraining the appellant from disturbing respondent's
possession and enjoyment of the suit land on the basis of its title and long and
and uninterrupted possession and such relief the Civil Court could obviously
grant.

f Jn Civil Appeal No. 1633 of 1971 after an adverse order had been passed
D by the Settlement Officer to the effect that the land in question was neither a
ryoti land in Ramnad Zamindari nor the private property of erstwhile
Zamindar, the respondent filed a suit for declaration of their title to the suit
land (based on a registered sale deed) and for injunction restraining the appel-
lants from interfering with their possessiOn. In that suit one of the issues
raised pertained to the nature or character of the suit land, whether it was a
l'yoti land in the erstwhile Ramnad Zamindari which had been taken over under
E the Act or a Poromboke (communal property) and the plea was that the Civil
Court had no jurisdiction to decide this question in view of section 64~C. The
Trial Court held that the suit property was Poromboke property and dismissed
the suit but in appeal preferred by the respondents the sub-:udge held that it
was ryoti land and respondents' title and possession thereto had been proved
but the suit was barred under section 64-C of the Act and on this basis he
F confirmed the dismissal of the suit. The High Court in second appeal accepted
the findings of the 1st Appellate Court on merits of the respondents' claims
and on the question of Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the real
nature or character of the suit land following its Division Bench decision held
that the Civil Court had jurisdiction to decide that question and allowed
the appeal.

G Dismissing the appeals, the Court

HELD: I. Whether a Civil Court'sjurisdiction to adjudicate upon the
nature and character of the land in question has been excluded or ousted under
Section 64-C of the Tamil Nadu fstates (Abolition and Conversion into
Ryotwari) Act, 1948 will have to be decided by reference to the principles laid
H down by the Supreme" Court, as to when the exclusion of the Civil Court's
jurisdiction can be inferred and in particular two out of seven propositions
culled out in D!iulabhai v. State of MadhJ•a Pradesh, [1968) 3 SCR 662. (737-H)
65
0

TAMIL NADU V. R.S. MADAM

2.1 It is true that section 64-C of the Act gives finality to the orders
passed by the Governn1ent or other authorities in respect of the matters to be A
determined by them under the Act and sub-section (2) thereof provides that
n\J such orders shall be called in question in any court of law. Even so, such
a provision by itself is not, having regard to the two propositions stated in
Dhulabhai's cas~ decisive on the point of ouster of the Civil Court's
jurisdiction and several other aspects such as the scheme of the Act, adequacy
and sufficiency of remedies provided by it etc., will have to be considered to
ascertain the precise intendment of the Legislature. In between the two B
sets of provisions dealing with grant of Ryotwari Patta to a Ryot (section JI)
and the grant thereof to a land-holder (Section 12-15) there is a difference of
vital significance, with the result that different considerations may arise while
deciding the issue of the ouster of Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate upon
the true nature or character of the concerned land. Approaching the question
from this angle it will be seen in the first place that section 64-C itself in terms
provides that the finality to the orders passed by the authorities in respect of c
the matters to be determined by them under the Act is "for the purposes of
this Aot" and not generally nor for any other purpose. [77 E-H]

2.2 The main object and purpose of the Act is to abolish all the estates
of the intermediaries like Zamindars, Inamdars, Jagirdars or under-tenure D
holders etc. and to convert all land-holdings in such estates into ryotwari
settlements which operation in revenue parlance means conversion of alienated
lands into non-alienated lands, that is to say, to deprive the intermediaries of
their right to collect all the revenues in respect of such lands and vesting the
same back in the Government. The enactment and its several provisions are
thus intended to s.:rve the revenue purpose of the Government, by way of
securing to the Government its sovereign right to collect all the revenues from E
all the lands and to facilitate the recovery thereof by the Government and in
that process, if necessary, to deal with claims of occupants of lands, nature of
the lands, etc, only incidentaIJy in a summary manner and that too for identi-
fying and registering persons in the revenue records from whom such recovery
of revenue is to be made. The object of granting a ryotwari patta is also to
enable holder thereof to cultivate the land specified therein directly under the
Government on payment to it of such assessment or cess that may be imposed
F
on the land under section 16. [78A-D]

2.3 The expression "for the purposes of this Act" has been designedly
used in the section which cannot be ignored but must be given cogent meaning
and on a plain reading of the section which uses such expression it is clear G
that any order passed by the Settlement Cfficer either granting or refusing to
grant a ryotwari patta to a ryot under section 11 of the Act must be regarded
as having been passed to achieve the purposes of the Act, namely, revenue
purposes, that is to say for fastening the liability on him to pay the assessment
or other dues and to facilitate the recovery of such revenue from him by the
Government; and therefore any decision impliedly rendered on the aspect of H
nature or character of the land on that occasion wiJI have to t e regarded as
incidental to and merely for the purpose of passing the order of granting or
refusing to grant the patta and for no other purpose. [78 E-G]
6 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1985) SUPPL, s.c.R.
2.3 Secondly, the principle indicated in the second proposition cnun..
A ciated in Dhulabhai's ca3e requires that the statute: when it creates a
special right or liability and provides for its determination, should also lay
down that all questions about the said right or liability shall be determined
by the-Tribunal or authority constituted by it, suggesting thereby that if there
is no such provision it will be difficult to infer ouster of the Civil Court's
jurisdiction to adjudicate all other questions pertaining to such right or liability.
Since from the notified date all the estate vests in the Government free from
B ericumbrances all the lands lying in such estate including private land of land-
holder and ryoti land cultivated by a ryot would vest in the Government and
the Act could be said to be creating a new ri&ht in favour of a land-holder
(re: his private lands) and a ryot (re: ryoti land) by granting a ryotwari palta
to them under sections 12 to 15 and section 11 respectively, and·the Act provides
for determination of such right by the Settlement Officer. [78 H; 79 A-Bl
c 2.5 However, it cannot be said that the Act also provides for deter-
mination of all questions about such right by the t:ettlement Officer. Unlike in
the case of an application for a ryotwari patta by a land·holder under
section 12, 13 or 14 where an inquiry into the nature or character of the land
and the history thereof is expressly directed to be undertaken by virtue of
section 15 in the case of an application for a ryotv.ari patta by a ryot under
D section 11 there is no express provision for any inquiry into the nature or
character of the land before granting or refusing to grant such patta to the
applicant. Jt is true that some inquiry is contemplated if section 11 is read
with proviso to cl. (d) of section 3 but even then there is no provision directin&
inquiry for the ascertainment of the nature of the land, namely, whether it is
a ryoti land or communal land but it is obvious that impliedly a decision on
this aspect of the matter must be arrived at by the Settlement Officer before
E he passes bis order on either granting or refusing to grant such patta. Obviously
such de.cision rendered impliedly on this aspect of the matter will be an inci·
dental one and arrived at in the summary manner only for the purpose of
granting or refusing to grant the patta. A sumnH1.ry decision of this type in
an inquiry conducted for revenue purposes cannot be regarded as final or
conclusive so as to constitute a bar to a Civil Court's jurisdiction adjudicatin&
F upon the same issue arising in a suit for unjunction filed by a ryot on the basis
of title and or long an uninterrupted possession. ~ince a fullftedged inquiry
on the nature or character of land is provided for under &ection 15 in the case
of an application by a land·holder the character of the Settlement Lfficer"s
decision on auch issue may be different. [79 C-G}

2.6 Thirdly, having regard to the principle stat~d by the Supreme Court
G while enunciating the first proposition in Dhulabhai's case it is clear that
even where the statute has given finality to the orders of the special tribunal
the civil Court's jurisdiction can be regarded as having been excluded if there
is adequate remedy to do what the Civil Court would normally do in a suit.
In other words, even where finality is accorded to the orders passed by the
special tribunal one will have to see whether such special tribunal bas powers
H to grant reliefs which Civil Court would normally grant in a suit and if th~
answer is in the negative it would be difficult to imply or infer exclusion of
Civil Court's jurisdiction, Since under the Tamil Nadu Estates (Abolition
and <;:on\ersion into Ryotwari) Act, 1948, the Settl~m~n.t, Officer has no power~
TAMIL NADU v. R.S. MADAM (Tu/zapurkar, J.) 67

beyond the power to grant or refuse to grant the patta under section 11 read
with section 3(d) of the Act on the materials placed before him, to do what A
Civil Court would normally do in a suit {like granting of injunction), ouster
• of Civil Court's jurisdiction cannot be implied simply because finality has been
accorded to the Settlem•nt Officer's order under section 64-C of the Act.
[79 H; 80 A-B; E)

Secretary of State v, Mask and Company, (1967) IA 222; and Dhulabhai
v. State of Madhya Pradesh, (1968] 3 SCR 662 relied on. B
M. Chayana v. K. Narayana, (1979) 3 SCR 201; and 0. Chtnchulaksh·
mamma v. D. Subramanya, [1980) I SCR 1006 discussed and distinguished.

CrvIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 474of1971.
c
From the Judgment and Order dated 7.6. 1968 of the Madras
High Court in Second Appeal No. 1149 of 1962.

WITH

Civil Appeal No. 1633of1971.
D

From the judgment and decree dated 17 .6.69 of the Madras
High Court in Second Appeal No. 1773 of 1964.

T.S. Krishnamurthy and A. V. Rangam for the appellant. E
B. Parthasarthy for the Respondent in C.A. No. 4747/1.

Gopal Snbramanium and Mrs. S. Ba/akrishnan for the Respon-
dent in C.A. No. 1633 of 1971.

The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
F

TULZAPURKAR, J. These appeals raise a common question of
law for our determination, namely, whether a Civil Court's jurisdic-
tion to determine the nature of the land in respect whereof a Ryot
has sought a Ryotwari Patta under s. 11 of the Tamil Nadu Estates G
(Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act 1948 (for short the
Act) is ousted or barred under s. 64-C of that Act ?

The material facts giving rise to the question in both the
appeals arc almost similar and therefore, it will suffice if facts H
obtaining in Civil Appeal No. 474 of 1971 are alluded to in details.
In this case one Ramalinga Samigal Madam, a religious Math
through its trustee Sutha Chaitnya Swami$al fi,le<) a s11it (0. S.
68 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1985) SUPPL. S.C.!l.
No. 184 of 1959) in the Court of District Munsiff at Manamadurai
for declaration of its title to the suit land admeasuring 3.55 acres
A being a portion of Survey No, ·114 and for an injunction restraining
the State of Tamil Nadu (Defendant-Appellant) from interfering with
its possession and enjoyment of the same. The Plaintiff-Madam
claimed title to the suit land on the basis of its Jong and uninter·
--
rupted possession since prior to 1938 as also under an Order of
B Assignment (Ex. A-1) dated 29.1.1938 issued in its favour by the
Zamindar of the erstwhile Sivaganga Estate whereby the Kudi right
(i.e. right to cultivate) in that land was granted to it subject to the
payment of a nominal nuzzur of Re. I per acre and an annual
rent of Re. 1 per acre beside cesses and a Teervapat Cowie
Patta was directed to be issued in favour of its trustee Sutha
c Chaithya Swamigal. It appears that the plantiff-Madam applied on
25.11.1953 for a Ryotwari Patta in respect of this land after the
abolition of the Sivaganga Estate under the Act and the Additional
Settlement Officer merely informed the Plaintiff-Madam that its
petition would receive consideration when s. 11 inquiry would be
D taken up. But subsequently, without reference to the Plaintiff-
Madam the Additional Settlement Officer passed an order (Ex. B·4)
on 25.6.1954 that Survey No. 114 was not a ryoti land on the
notified date but had been registered as a Poromboke (village
communal land and, therefore, no one was enti1led to Ryotwari
Patta in respect of it. Aggrieved by the order the Plaintiff-Madam
E filed the suit for a declaration of its title and right to continue
in possession and enjoyment of the suit land, subject to pay-
ment of Ryotwari or other case to be imposed by Government
without any interference from the Government. The State of Tamil
Nadu resisted the suit on merits by contending that the suit land was
F communal land and that the assignment or grant by the Zamindar in
favour of plaintiff-Madam was invalid a well as by raising a
technical plea that the decision of the Additional Settlemens Officer
that the suit land was Pmorboke and not ryoti land was final
and the Civil Court's jurisdiction to decide that question was

G
barred under s.64-C of the Act. The Trial Court as well as the Sub
Judge in appeal accepted the plaintiff's case on merits by holding that
the suit land was a ryoti land and that the assignment of Kudi right
therein by !he Zamindar in plaintiff's favour was valid; the technical
-
plea of jurisdiction was negatived and the suit "as decreed by grant-
ing the necessary declaration and injunction protecting plaintiff's
H possession and enjoyment of the suit land In second appeal preferr-
ed by the State of Tamil Nadu to the High Court the lower Courts'
gecision on the merits of the plaintiff's cl~illl was not challenged but
'i'Ai.i.1i:. NADU v. P..s. MAD..ii (Tulzapurkar, J.)
.
69
'

the techinical plea of the lack of jurisdiction on the part of the Civil
Court in the light of s. 64-C of the Act WlS pressed. In view of the A
importauce of the ctuestion the learned Single J ud2e referred the case
to the Division Bench who negatived the contention and dismissed the
appeal. The Division Bench took the view that there was no provision
under s. 11 read with proviso cl. (d) of s. 3 of the Act for the asccr·
tainment of the character of the land (whether it was ryoti land or B
communal land) and that the decision of Settiement Officer whether
the land is ryoti or not is an incidental one merely for the purpose
of granting the Ryotwari Patta and Civil Court's jurisdiction to adju·
dicate upon the nature of the land when that aspect is specifically put
in issue, is not taken away under s. 64-C of the Act; and what is
more the Division Bench further held that the plaintiff's suit was not c
for obtaining a ryotwari patta in its favour (which matter lay within
the powers and jurisdiction of the Settlement Officer) but the suit was
for injunction restraining the defendant from disturbing plaintiffs'
possession and enjoyment of the suit land on the basis of its title and
long and uninterrupted possession and such relief the Civil Court
D
could obviously grant.

In the other matter (Civil Appeal No. 1633of1971) also, after an
adverse order had been passed by the Settlement Officer to the effect
that the land in question was neither a ryoti land en Ramnad Zamin·
dari nor the private property of erstwhile Zamindar, the plaintiffs E
filed a suit for declaration of their title to the suit land (based on a re·
gistered sale deed) and for injunction restraining the defendants from
interfering with their possession. In that suit one of the issues raised
pertained to the nature or character of the suit land, whether it was
a ryoti land in the erstwhile Ramnad Zimindari which had been F
taken over under the Act or a Poromboke (communal property) and
the plea was that the Civil Court had no jurisdiction to decide this
question in view of s. 64·C. The Trial Court held that the suit pro-
perty was Poromboke property and dismisSf d the suit but in appeal
preferred by the plaintiffs the Sub-Judge held that it was ryoti land
and plaintiffs' title and possession thereto had been proved but the G
suit was barred under s. 64-C of the Act and on this basis he confirm-
ed the dismissal of the suit. The High Court in second appeal accept•
ed the findings of the !st Appellate Court on merits of the plaintiffs·
claim and on the question of Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate
upon the real nature or character of the suit land it followed the
H
Division Bench decision in the earlier matter and held that the Civil
Court had jurisdiction to decide that question and allowed the appeal.
70 SUPREME COuRT REPORTS (i98S) SUPPL s.c.k

In the instant appeals before us the State of Tamil Nadu has
A challenged the aforesaid view of the High Court.

Counsel for the appellants in both the appeals has relied upon
s. 64-C of the Act and s. 11 of the Act read with the definition of the
'ryoti land' given in s. 3 (16)(a)(b) and (c) of the Tamil Nadu
Estate Lands Act, 1908 for the purpose of contending that an order
B passed by the Settlement Officer in an enquiry under s. 11 of the Act
to the effect that the land in question is not ryoti land but Poromboke
property (communal land) and therefore no ryotwari patta could be
issued in respect thereof to the applicant has been given finality
under s. 64-C of the Act and the same cannot be questioned in any
c court of law and therefore the Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate
upon the nature or character of the land must be regarded as having
been ousted or excluded by the Legislature. In order to appreciate
this contention it will be necessary to set out the relevant provisions
on which the reliance has been placed by the Counsel for appellants.
Section 64-C of the Act runs thus:
D
"64-C. Finality of orders passed under this Act. -
(!)Any order passed by the Government or other autho·
rity under this Act in respect of matters to be determined
for the purpose of this Act shall, subject only to any
E appeal or revision provided by or under this Act, be final.

(2) No such order shall be liable to be questioned in
any Court of law."

Section 11 so far as is material runs thus:

"11. Lands in which ryot Is entitled to ryotwari
patta.-Every ryoti in an estate shall, with effect on and
from the notified date ,be entitled to a ryotwari patta in
respect of-
G (a) all ryoti lands which, immediately before the
notified date, were properly included or ought to have
been properly included in his holding and which are not
either lanka lands or lands in respect of which a land-
H holder or some other person is entitled to a ryotwari
patta under any other provision of this Act; and

(b) ..
TAMIL NADU v. R.S. MADAM (Tulzaputkar, J.) 7i
It is thus clear that before a ryotwari patta can be had under s. 11
(a) two conditions must be 1atisfied (a) the applicant must be a A

' "ryot" in an estate and (b) the land in respect of which the patta is
sought must be "ryoti land". The expression 'estate' has been defined
in i. 2(3) of the Act to mean-a 'Zamandari' or an under-tenure or
an inam estate. But the expressions 'ryot' and 'ryoti land' have not
been defined in the Act but their defiuitions given in •· 3 of the Tamil B
Nadu Estate Lands Act, 1908 have been adopted for the purpose of
the Act. Section 3(15) of the T. N. Estate Lands Act, 1908 defines
'ryot' thus:

'Ryol' means a person who holds for the purpose of
agriculture ryoti land in an estate on condition of paying C
to the landholder the rent which is legally due upon It.

Section 3 (16) defines 'Ryoti land' thus:

'Ryoti land' means cultivable Ian in an estate other
than private land but does not include- D
(a) beds and bunds of tanks and ofsupply, drainage
surplus or irrigation channels;

(b) threshing-floor, cattle-stands, village-sites, and
other lands situated in any estate which are set apart for E
the common use of the villagers;
(c) lands granted on service tenure either free of rent
or on favourable rates of rent if granted before the pass·
ing of this Act or free of rent if granted after that date,
so long as the service tenure subsists. F

The definition of ryoti land given above clearly shows that it means
cultivable land in an estate other than private land but it also exclu·
des Porombokes or village communal lands under cl. (b). It is thus
clear that any cultivable land in an estate will not be 'ryoti land' if
G
it falls under cl. (b).

Relying upon the aforesaid provisions Counsel for the appell-
ants urged before us that every refusal of a ryotwari patta by a
Settlement Officer in an inquiry under s. 11 iuvolves a decision on
his part that either the applicant is not a ryot or the land is not H
ryoti land; in the instant cases it was the latter and such decision
on the nature or character of the land has been given a finality
12 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [198S]SUPPL. s.c.l.

under s.64·C which cannot be questioned in a Court of law and
A therefore the Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the nature
or chracter of the suit lands must be held to have been excluded
or ousted. Counsel therefore urged that the High Court's view
deserves to be quashed.

B On the other hand Counsel for the respondents contended that
it is well settled that exclusion of Civil Court's jurisdiction is not to
be readily inferred and has to be provided for in express terms or
by necessary implication. Counsel urged that there is no express
exclusion and if regard is had to the scheme of the Act, particularly
the provisions dealing with the grant of ryotwari patta to a
c Zamindar or landholder under ss. 12-15 in contrast with the grant
thereof to a ryot under s. 11 it will appear clear that qua the former
there may be such exclusion of Civil Court's jurisdiction but qua the
latter none is intended. Counsel also urged us to accept the view
taken by the High Court on the point.
D
The principles bearing on the question as to when exclusion of
the Civil Court's jurisdiction can be inferred have been indicated in
several judicial pronouncements but we need refer to only two
decisions. In Secretary of State v. Mask and Company,(') the Privy
Council at page 236 of the Report has observed thus :
E
"It is settled law that the exclusion of the jurisdiction
of the Civil Courts is not to be readily inferred but that
such exclusion must either be explicitly expressed or
clearly implied. It is also well settled that even if
F jurisdiction is so excluded, the Civil Courts have jurisdic-
tion to examine into cases where the provisions of the Act
have not been complied with or the statutory tribunal has
not acted in conformity with the fundamental principles
of judicial procedure."

G In Dhulabhai v. State of Madhya Pradesh(') Hidayatullah, C. J.,
speaking for the Court, on an analysis of the various decisions cited
before the Court expressing diverse views, culled out as many as 7
propositions; out of them the first two which are material for our
purposes are these :
H
(I) [1967] I.A. 222.
(2) [1968] 3 S.C.R. 662.
TAMIL NADU v. R.S. MADAM (tulzapurkar' J.) 73
"(!) Where the statute gives a finality to the orders of
the special tribunal the civil courts' jurisdiction must be A
held to be excluded if there is adequate remedy to do
what the civil courts would normally do in a suit. Such
provision, however, does not exclude those cases where
the provisions of the particular Act have not been
complied with or the statutory tribunal has not acted in B
conformity with the fundamental principles of judicial
procedure.

(2) Where there is an express bar of the jurisdiction
of the court, an examination of the scheme of the parti·
cular Act to find the adequacy or the sufficiency of the C
remedies provided may be relevant but is not decisive to
sustain the jurisdiction of the civil court.

Where there is no express exclusion the examination
of the remedies and the scheme of the particular Act to D
find out the intendmcnt becomes necessary and the result
of the inquiry may be decisive. In the latter case it is
necessary to see if the statute creates a special right or a
liability and provides for the determination of the right
or liability and further lays down that all questions about
the said right and liability shall be determined by the E
tribunals so constituted, and whether remedies normally
associated with actions in civil courts are prescribed by
the said statute or not."

It is obvious that the question raised before us whether the F
civil court's jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the nature or character of
the land in question has been excluded or ousted will have to be
decided by reference to these principles. It was fairly conceded by
Counsel for the appellants that there is nothing in the Act which
expressly bars the civil court's jurisdiction but such exdusion has to G
inferred by be clear implication in view of s.64- C which accords
finality to any any order that may be passed by the Government or
other authority under the Act in respect of matters to be determined
for the purposes of the Act, subject only to any appeal or revision
provided by or under the Act and also because the section goes on to H
provide that no such order shall be liable to be questioned in any
court of law. Therefore, an examination of the scheme of the Act and
the relevant provisions thereof including s. 64-C becomes necessary
74 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1985) SUPPL. S.C.ll.

before such exclusion of civil court's jurisdiction by necessary
A implication can be inferred.

The Act, as its Preamble indicates was put on the statute book
with a view "to provide for the repeal of the Permanent Settlement,
the acquisition of the rights of the land-holders in permanently settled
B and certain other estates in the State of Tamil Nadu and the intro·
duction of the ryotwari settlement in such estates"; in other words
the avowed object or purpose of the Act was to repeal the perma·
nent settlement and acquire the rights of the land-holders i.e. all
intermediaries like Zamindars, Jagirdars, under-tenure holders etc.
on payment of compensation and convert the land holdings in such
c estates into Ryotwari settlements. Section 3, which seeks to abolish
all the estates under the Permanent Settlement, provides that with
effect on and from the notified date (which in relation to an estate
means the date on which the provision of the Act shall come into
force in that estate) the entire estate (including all communal lands,
D porombokes, other non-ryoti lands, waste lands, pasture lands, Janka
lands, forest mines and minerals, quarries, rivers and streams, tanks;
ooranies (including private tanks and ooranies) and irrigation works,
fisheries and ferries shall stand transferred to the Government and
vest in them free from all encumbrances and the T.N. Revenue Re,
covery Act, 1864 and the T.N. Irrigation Cess Act, 1865 and all other
E enactments applicable to ryotwari areas shall apply to the estate; and
under s. 3(d) Government has been given the right to take possession
forthwith of such estate. However such vesting of the entire estate in
the Goverement on and from the notified dateand the Government's
right to recover possession thereof are qualified by the proviso thereto
F whereunder the possession (occupancy right) of a ryot in ryoti land
and of a land-bolder of his private land in the estate is protected.
Section 3(d) together with the proviso is material and it runs
thus:

"3(d) The Government may, after removing any
G
obstruction that may be offered forthwith take possession
of the estate, and all accounts, registers, pattas, muchili-
kas, maps, plans and other documents relating to the
estate which the Government may require for the
H administration thereof:

Provided that the Government shall not dispossess
any person of any land in the estate in respect of which
TAMIL NADtl v. R.S. MADAM (Tulzapurkar, i.) 7S

-- they consider that he is prima facie entitled to a ryotwari
patta-

(i) if such person is a ryot, pending the decision of the
A

Settlement Officer as to whether he is actually
entitled to such patta;
B
(ii) if such person is land-holder, pending the decision of the
Settlement Officer and the Tribunal on appeal, if any, to
it, as to whether he is actually entitled to such patta."

The topic of grant of ryotwari pattas to a ryot in respect of ryoti
land in an estate and to a land-holder in respect of his private lands c
in such estate is dealt with by ss. II and 12 to 15. Section 11
which deals with the grant of a Ryotwari Patta to a Ryot in ryoti
land, in so far as is material, has already been quoted above.
Sections 12, 13 and 14 deal with the grant of a Ryotwari Patta to a
land-bolder in respect of his private lands in Zamindari estate, inami
estate, and under-tenure estate respectively and s. 15 which follows
D
upon ss. 12, 13 and 14 and deals with the aspect of determination
the nature of character of the lands in which the land-holder is to
be granted ryotwari patta is very material and it runs thus :

"15 Determination of lands in which the land-holder E
is entitled to ryotwari patta under foregoing provisions.-
( I) The Settlement Officer shall examine the nature and
history of all lands in respect of which the landholder
claims a ryotwari patta under section 12, 13 or l 4 as the
case may be, and decide in respect of which lands the
claim should be allowed. F

(2)(a) Against a decision of the Settlement Officer
under sub-section (1), the Government may, within one
year from the commencement of the Tamil Nadu Estates
(Abolition and Conversion) into Ryotwari) Amendment G
Act, 1954, or from the date of the decision, which-ever
is later; and any person aggrieved by such decision may,
within two months from the said date, appeal to the
Tribunal.
H
Provided that the Tribunal may, in its discretion,
allow further time not exceeding six months for the filing
of any such appeal :
76 SUPltEME COURT Rlii><>Rtll tl98~) SUPPt. !!.C.R.

Provided further that the Tribunal may, in its
A discretion, entertain, an appeal by the Government at any
time if it appears to the Tribunal that the decision of the
Settlement Officer was vitiated by fraud or by the mistake
of fact.

(b) The decision of the Tribunal on any such appeal
B shall be final and not be liable to be questioned in any
Court of Law."

Section 16 deals with \he liability to pay assessment, etc. for lands
held under Ryotwari Pattas to the Government and it runs thus :
c
"16. Liability to pay assessment, etc. to Govern·
ment.-(1) Every person, whether a land-bolder or a
ryot, who becomes entitled to a ryotwari patta under this
Act in respect of any land shall (for each fasli year
commencing with the falsi year in which the estate is
D notified) be liable to pay to the Government such assess-
ment, as may be lawfully imposed on the land.

(2) If in respect of any such land, the ryot was liable
immediately before the notified date to make any pay·
E ment to the landholder otherwise than by way of rent,
whether periodically or not, the ryot shall continue to
make such payments as accrue on or after that to the
Government."

It will be seen that elaborate provisions have been made in
F the enactment to carry out the main objective and other purposes of
the Act and ss. 4 to 8 deal with constituting authorities like Tribunals
and Board of Revenue and appointing various officers such as
a Director of Settlement Officers and Managers of Estates etc. to
carry out functions and duties assigned to them under the Act. It
will be pertinent to observe that in between the provisions dealing
G with grant of Ryotwari Patta to a Ryot (section 11) and the grant
thereof to a land-holder (ss. 12 to 15) there is a difference of vital
significance; whereas in the case of an application for a Ryotwari
Patta by a land-bolder under s. 12, 13 or 14, s. 15 in terms enjoins a
duty upon the Settlement Officer to examine the nature and character
H of the land and history thereof and then decide whether the claim
of the land-holder should be allowed or not, in the case of an appli-
cation for a ryotwari patta by a ryot under s. 11 there is no similar
TAMIL NADU v. R.S. MADAM (Tulzapurkat, 1.) 77

express provision for any inquiry into the nature or character of the
land before granting or refusing to grant such patta to the applicant. A
Even ifs. 11 is read with the proviso to cl. (d) of s. 3, whereunder
some inquiry is contemplated before granting a Ryotwari Patta to a
ryot there is no provision directing an inquiry for the ascertainmMt
of the character of the land, namely, whether it is ryoti land or
communal land and the Settlement Officer's decision on this aspect
B
will be incidental to and impliedly rendered only for the purpose of
granting or refusing to grant the Ryotwari Patta. There is also this
further difference that the Settlement Officer's decision on the nature
or character of the land under s. 15 is subject to a regular appeal to
the Tribunal under sub·s. (2) thereof while the Settlement Officer's
decision to grant or refuse to grant a Patta to a ryot under s. 11 c
is subject to be revised by the Director of Settlement under s. 5(2)
as also by the Board of Revenue under s. 7(c) and tlae relevant Rules
in that behalf and the decision of the Director of Settlement in
revision is further revisable by the Board of Revenue under s. 7(d)
of the Act. Then comes s. 64-C which accords finality to the
D
orders passed by the Government or other authorities under the
Act which we have earlier quoted in extenso.

Now turning to the question raised in these appeals for our
determination (it is true that s. 64-C of the Act gives finality to the
orders passed by the Government or other authorities in respect of E
the matters to be determined by them under the Act and sub·s. (2)
thereof provides that no such orders shall be called in question in
any court of law. Even so, such a provision by itself is not, having
regard to the two propositions quoted above from Dhu/abhai's case
(supra), decisive on the point of ouster of the Civil Court's juris· F
diction and several other aspects like the scheme of the Act, adequacy
and sufficiency of remedies provided by it etc., will have to be consi-
dered to ascertain the precise intendment of the Legislature. Further,
having regard to the vital difference indicated above, in between the
two sets of provisions dealing with grant of ryotwari pattas to land-
holders on the one hand and ryots on the other different consi- G
derations may arise while deciding the issue of the ouster of Civil
Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the true nature of character
of the concerned land. Approaching the queit1on from this angle
it will be seen in the first place that s. 64-C itself in terms provides ·
that the finality to the orders passed by the authorities in respect of H
the matters to be determined by them under the Act is "for the
purposes of this Act" and not llenerally nor for any oth~r purpose.
73 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (1985] SUPPL, s.c.R.

As stated earlier the main objert and purpose of the Act is 'to
A abolish all the estates of the intermediaries like Zamindars, Illamdars,
Jagirdars or under· tenure holders etc. and to convert all land· holdings
in such estates into ryotwari settlements which operation in revenue
parlance means conversion of alienated lands into non-alienated
·lands, that is to say, to deprive the intermediaries of their right to
collect all the revenues in respect of such lands and vesting the same
back in the Government. The enactment and its several provisions
are thus intended to serve the revenue purposes of the Government,
by way of securing to the Government its sovereign right to collect
all the revenues from all the lands and to facilitate the recovery
thereof by the Government and in that process, if necessary, to
C•
deal with claims of occupants of lands, nature of the lands, etc. only
incidentally in a summary manner and that too for identifying and
registering persons in the revenue records from whom such recovery
of revenue is to be made. The object of granting a ryotwari patta
is also to enable holder thereof to cultivate the ' land specified therein
D directly under the Government on payment to it of such assessment
or cess, that may· be lawfully. imposed on the land. Section 16 is
very clear in this behalf which imposes the liability to pay such ryot•
wari or other assessment imposed upon the land to the Government
by the patta·holder. The expression "for the purposes of this Act"
Iias been designedly used in the section which cannot be ignored but
E· must be given cogent meaning and on a plain reading of the section
which uses such expression it ·is clear that any order passed by the
Settlement Officer either granting or refusing to grant a ryotwari
patta to a cyot under s. 11 of _the Act must be regarded as having
been passed to achieve the purposes of the Act, namely,· revenue
. purposes, that is to say for fastening the liability on him ·to pay the
assessment or other. dues and to facilitate the· recovery of.· such
· revenue from him by the Government; and therefore any decision
'· -impliedly rendered on the aspect of nature or character of the land
on that occasion will have to be regarded as incidental to and merely
for the purpose of passing the order of granting or refusing to· grant
the patta and for no other purpose.
!'
Secondly, the principle indicated in the second proposition
enunciated in Dhulabhai's case (supra) requires that the statute,
H. when it creates a special right or liability and provides for its deter·
mination, should also lay down that all questions about the said
right or liability shall be determined by the Tribunal or authority
constituted by it, suggestini; thereby that if there is no ~uch provision
..
TAMIL NADU v. R.s. MADAM (Tu/zapurkar, J.) 79

it will be difficult to infer ouster of the Civil Court's jurisdiction to
adjudicate all other questions pertaining to such right or liability. A
- Since from the notified date all the estate vests in the Government
free from encumbrances) it must be held that (all the lands lying in
such estate including private land of land-holder and ryoti land
cultivated by a ryot would vest in the Government and the Act
could be said to be creating a new right in favour of a land-holder
(re: his private lands) and a ryot (re: ryoti land) by granting a ryot-
B
- wari patta to them under ss. 12 to 15 and s. 11 respectively, and
the Act provides for determination of such right by the Settlement
Officer. Question is whether the Act also provides for determination
of all questions about such right by the Settlement Officer ? On
this aspect, as has been indicated earlier (unlike in the case of an c
application for a ryotwari patta by a land-holder under s. 12, 13
or 14 where an inquiry into the nature or character of the land and
the history thereof is expressly directed to be undertaken by virtue
of s. 15 in the case of an application for a ryotwari patta by a ryot
under 11. 11 there is no express provision for any inquiry into the
nature or ch1racter of the land before granting or refusing to grant
D
such patta to the applicant. It is true that some inquiry is con-
templated if s. 11 is read with proviso to cl. (d) of s. 3 but even then
there is no provision directing inquiry for the ascertainment
of the nature of the land, namely, whether it is a ryoti land
or communal land but it is obvious that impliedly a decision E
on this aspect of the matter must be arrived at the Settlement
Officer before he passes his order on either granting or refusing to
grant such patta. Obviously such decision rendered impliedly on
this aspect of the matter will be an incidental one and arrived at in
the summary manner only for the purpose of granting or refusing to
grant the patta. A summary decision of this type in an inquiry F
conducted for revenue purposes cannot be regarded as final or con-
clusive so as to constitute a bar to a Civil Court's jurisdiction
adjudicating upon the same issue arising in a suit for injunction filed
by a ryot on the basis of title and/or long and uninterrupted posses-
sion. Since a fullfledged inquiry on the nature or character of G
land is provided for under s. 15 in the case of an application by a
land-bolder the character of the Settlement Officer's decision on such
issue may be different but that question is not before us.

Thirdly, having regard to the principle stated by this Court H
~~ile enunciating the first proposition in Dhulabhai's case (supra)
11 ts clear that even where the statute has 11iven finality to the orders
80 SUPREME COURP REPORT (1985] SUPPL. s.c.R.

of the special tribunal the civil court's jurisdiction can be regarded
A

-
as having been excluded if there is adequate remedy to do what the
civil court would normally do in a suit. In other words, even where
finality is accorded to the orders passed by the special tribunal one
will have to see whether such special tribunal has powers to grant
reliefs which Civil Court would normally grant in a suit and if the
answer is in the negative it would be difficult to imply or infer
B
exclusion of Civil Court's jurisdiction. Now take the case of an
applicant who has applied for a ryotwari patta under s. 11 staking
his claim thereto on the basis of his long and uninterrupted posses·
-
sion of the ryoti land but the Settlement Officer on materials before
him is not satisfied that the land in question is ryoti land; in that
c case he will refuse the patta to the applicant. But can he, even
after the refusal of the patta, protect the applicant's long and un·
interrupted possession against the Government's interference ?
Obviously, he cannot, for it lies within his power and jurisdiction
merely to grant or refuse to grant the patta on the basis of materials
placed before him. But such a person even after the refusal of the
D ryotwari patta would be entitled to protect his possessory title and
long enjoyment of the land and seek an injunction preventing
Government's interference otherwise than in due course of law and
surely before granting such relief the Civil Court may have to adjudi·
cate upon the real nature of character of the land if the same is put
E in issue. In other words since the Settlement Officer has no power
to do what Civil Court would normally do in a suit it is difficult to
imply ouster of Civil Court's jurisdiction simply because finality has
been accorded to the Settlement Officer's order under s. 64-C of
the Act.
F Counsel for the appellants invited our attention to two deci-
sions of this Court one in M. Chayana v. K. Narayana,( 1) under the
Andhra Pradesh (Andhra Area) Estates (Abolition and Conversion
into Ryotwari) Act 26of1948 and the other in 0. Chenchulakshmamma
v. D. Subramanya(') under the Madras Estates (Abolition and Conver·
-
•r
'
sion into Ryotwari) Act 26 of 1948. It may be stated that both the
G
enactments (the A.P. Act as well as the Madras Act) contain substan-
tially identical provisions and in particular s. 56 with which the
Court was concerned in the two cases is in identical language. Sub-sec
(I) of sec. 56 provides that "whereafter an estate is notified, a dis·
H pute ar.ises as to (a) whether any rent due. from a ryot for any Fasli

(I) [1979J 3 S.C.R. 201.
(2) [1980J 1 S.C.R. 1006,

;_
I•
TAMIL NADU v. R.S. MADAM (Tu/zapurkar, 1.) 81
year is m arrear or (b) what amount of rent is in arrear or (c) who
the lawful ryot in respect of any holding is, the dispute shall be A
decided by the Settlement Officer". Sub-sec. (2) provides for an
appeal to the tribuual against the decision of the Settlement Officer
and the tribunal's decision in appeal has been rendered final and not
liable to be questioned in a Court of law. In both the cases this Court
has taken the view that a dispute between two rival claimants as to
who is the lawful ryot entitled to the patta of the holding in question B
had been exclusively left to the determination of the Settlement Officer
under that provision and since finality has been accorded to such de-
termination which is not liable to be called in question in any Court
of law the Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate upon such dispute
has been excluded. Relying upon these decisions, counsel for the appel-
lant urged before us that the civil court's jurisdiction to adjudicate
c
upon the issue of real nature or character of the land should be held
to have been excluded under s. 64-C of the Act which also accords
finality to the Sttlement Officer's order refusing to grant the ryotwari
patta to a ryot under s. 11 of the Act on the ground that the land in
question is not ryoti land. It is not possible to accept this contention D
for the two decisions are clearly distinguishable. In the first place s. 56
with which the Court was concerned in those cases does not contain
the words "for tbe purposes of the Act" which occur in s. 64-C; and
presumably in view of the absence of those words in the section this
Court in M. Chayana's case observed that there was no warrant for
taking the view that the Settlement Officer's decision under s. 56 (I) E
(cl on the queston as to who was the lawlul ryot of holding was only
for the purpose of indentifying the person liable to pay the arrear of
rent. Secondly under s. 56 (l)(c) the Settlement Officer is expressly
required to make an inquiry into and decide the question as to who
is a lawful ryot of the holding between two rival claimants whereas
r as stated earlier there is no express provision directing an inquiry
F
into the question of the real nature or character of the land while
considering a ryot's application for a patta under s. 11 read with the
proviso to s. 3(d). In other words, the two provisions are dis-similar.
Moreover, it may be pointed out that so far as the Madras Act is
concerned by Madras Act 34 of 1958 s. 56 itself has been repealed G
with effect from 27th December 1958 and s. 9(2) of the repealing Act
(No. 34 of 1958) has gone on to provide that all proceeding pending
before the Settlement Officer or Tribunal under that section shall
abate. As a result of such repeal the Madras High Court in two de-
cisions, Krishna Swami Thevar's case(') and A.R. Sanjeevi Naicker's(') H
(I) [1961] I M.L.J. 168.
(2) [196Sl 2 M.L.J. 204,
82 SUPREME COURT REPORT (1985] SUPPL. S.C.R.

case has held that now there is no machinery avilabele under the
A Madras Act to have a determination of the dispute between two
rival claimants regarding their title as to who would be entitled to '
the patta and s. 11 does not contain machinery for deciding disputed
questions of title. Whatever be the position in regard to dispute
concering rival claims or titles, the ratio of the two decisions of this
Court on which counsel placed reliance is inapplicable to the issue
B raised in these appeals for our determination.

Having regard to the above discussion we confirm the High
Court's view that the Civil Court's jurisdiction to adjudicate on the
real nature of the land is not ousted under s. 64-C by reason of the
C Settlement Officer's decision to grant or refuse to grant a patta under
s. II read with the proviso to s. 3(d) of the Act. The appeals are,
therefore, dismissed but with no costs.

S.R. Appeals dismissed.