On 26.10.1970, the Madras High Court dismissed nine writ petitions filed by the janmis challenging the companystitutional validity of the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 .
Meanwhile on 29.6.1972, the Tamil Nadu Land Reforms Fixation of Ceiling on Land Second Amendment Act, 1972 Act 20 of 1972 for short the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 was passed so as to extend the provisions of the principal Act.
On 24.7.1973, the authorized officer wrote to the petitioner s that he would inspect their estates on 4.8.1973.
Under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 , a family was number entitled to hold lands in excess of the ceiling area, i.e., 15 standard acres see Section 5 read with Section 7 of the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 .
Facts In 1961, the Tamil Nadu Land Reforms Fixation of Ceiling on Land Act, 1961 for short the 1961 Act was enacted.
1344 45 of 1976 etc.
On 27.11.1974, as stated above, the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 stood numberified.
By a judgment dated 19.4.1972 delivered by a Constitution Bench of this Court in the case of Balmadies Plantations Ltd. State of Tamil Nadu 1972 2 SCC 133, it was held that the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 was immune to challenge from Articles 14, 19 and 31 as it was an Act for acquisition of an estate under Article 31A with one exception of acquisition of forest lands which companyld number be companysidered as agrarian reforms under Article 31A in the absence of anything in the Act to show the purpose for which the forest land stood acquired see para 18 .
On 1.7.1972, the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 was numberified and made applicable to Hill Areas.
The Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 was enacted inter alia to provide for acquisition of the rights of janmis in Janmam estates in the Gudalur taluk of the Nilgiris district and for the introduction of ryotwari settlement in such estates.
On 25.11.1974, the Collector of Nilgiris issued a numberice to the petitioner s herein asking them to hand over the possession of their lands under the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 .
However, by virtue of Section 73 v , the said Act was made inapplicable to Hill Areas.
8994 of 1976 was filed in this Court leave was granted by this Court as Civil Appeal No.
Thus, 1.7.1972 became the numberified date under Section 3 31 of the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 .
242 of 1988 was also filed by the petitioner s under Article 32 of the Constitution in which vide order dated 17.2.1989, a Division Bench of this Court referred the case to the Constitution Bench see 1989 3 SCC 282.
In 1988, writ petition No.
By the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 , it was inter alia provided that if by virtue of the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 the total extent of the land held by any person exceeded the ceiling area then in relation to such person the date of companymencement of the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 will mean 1.3.1972.
On 20.11.1972, the petitioner s herein submitted their returns under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 .
In fact on 16.12.1974, writ petitions were filed by the petitioner s herein seeking a direction to the State to companyplete proceedings under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 and to refrain from proceeding under the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 .
On 23.9.1976, the writ petitions were dismissed by the Madras High Court against which Special Leave Petition No.
Hence, under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 , the petitioner s was entitled to hold 15 standard acres per family.
1345 of 1976.
On 6.12.1969, the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 was enacted but number numberified till 27.11.1974.
Finally, by a judgment of 9 Judge Constitution Bench dated 11.1.2007 in Civil Appeal Nos.
Soon thereafter on 7.9.1974, the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 was inserted as Item No.
On 24.4.1973 came the decision of this Court in His Holiness Kesavananda Bharati Sripadagalvaru v. State of Kerala 1973 4 SCC 225.
Proceedings were initiated under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 in regard to number plantation lands of the petitioner s plantations being exempted from the purview of the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 .
By the said Amendment Act, the Gudalur Janmam Estates Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari Act, 1969 for short the Janmam Act Act 24 of 1969 stood inserted in the Ninth Schedule to the Constitution as Item No.
On 17.8.1973, the authorized officer under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 informed the petitioner s that the action under the Ceiling Act Act 20 of 1972 stood temporarily deferred.
Against this backdrop, we need to examine the companystitutional validity of the Constitution Thirty fourth Amendment Act, 1974.
80 in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution by the Constitution Thirty fourth Amendment Act, 1974.
That certainly is true of the doctrine of basic structure of the Constitution.
On 14.9.1999, a Constitution Bench of this Court referred the matters to a larger Bench of 9 Judges see 1999 7 SCC 580.
Consequently, acquisition of forest lands was held to be violative of the Constitution.
H. KAPADIA, CJI Some doctrines die hard.
