Case Brief: Karbalai Begum v. Mohd Sayeed And Anr. 

NAME OF THE CASE	Karbalai Begum v. Mohd Sayeed and Anr.
CITATION	AIR 1981 SC 771981 SCR(1) 8631980 SCC(4) 396
DATE OF JUDGMENT	October 07, 1980
PETITIONER	Karbalai Begum
RESPONDENT	Mohd. Sayeed and Anr.
BENCH/JUDGE	Syed Murtaza Fazalali J.; P.N. Bhagwati J.
STATUTES INVOLVED	Transfer of Property Act, 1882Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953UP Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950Land Reforms Act, 1950
IMPORTANT SECTIONS/ARTICLE	Section 49 of the Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953Section 52 of Transfer of Property Act, 1882

Facts of the case:

The case pertains to a property dispute matter regarding an agricultural land at Uttar Pradesh, between the plaintiff and her cousins (both are defendants in the case). Both the plaintiff and the defendants jointly possessed (co-bhumidars) the disputed plot of land. The plaintiff used to live with her son in Lucknow, and for that time-being allowed the defendants to look after her share of land as constructive trustees.

However, in 1953, the plaintiff had stated that she had executed a registered sale deed in the favour of Md. Sayeed. The sale deed being duly registered, promotes legal validity of the document. However, later Karbalai denied the transfer of title of the property to him. Therefore, the deed was challenged by her in the consolidated proceeding, stating that she had never transferred such property and it continued to remain with her. 

The widow of Syed Laek Husain, Karbalai, was gradually being deprived of her rights over the property by her brother-in-laws(defendants). It was even held that they had carved out separate plots during the consolidation proceedings, without her consent and prior information. It was later known to her that her name had been removed from the khewat(karta number) and the entire plot got mutated in their names. 

When the suit was filed by the plaintiff in the trial court, it was dismissed on the ground that the civil court lacked jurisdiction and therefore relief could not be granted to her. The trial court held that, only consolidated authorities under the UP Consolidation of Holding Act,1953 and  Uttar Pradesh Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950 had the jurisdiction to try such cases. 

The consolidated proceeding is a legal process that was carried out under the UP Consolidation of the Holding Act, 1953, in order to merge various fragmented land holdings, by making it much more manageable and easier to regulate. 

On appeal, the petitioner filed the case before the High Court. However, the High Court upheld the similar decision as was stated by the trial court. 

The case was therefore, further appealed by the petitioner to the Supreme Court, to which the apex court held the invalidity of the sale deed on the ground of lis pendens, as mentioned under Section 52 of Transfer of Property Act, 1882. The apex court held that the civil courts and the Supreme Court would not be barred by the jurisdiction over the matter, as it involves the dispute related to the ownership and title of the property as well, which could not be conclusively decided by the consultation authorities. 

The doctrine of lis pendens, which literally means “a pending lawsuit” in Latin, bars the transfer or alteration of the property by the parties, when the matter is sub judiced before a civil court. 

Provisions Involved:

The matter involved some major provisions:-

1. Section 49 of the Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953
2. Section 52 of Transfer of Property Act, 1882
3. UP Zamindari Abolition and Land reforms Act, 1950 (general provisions) 
4. Doctrine of Constructive Trusteeship (general provisions) 

Issues involved:

1. Whether the civil court had jurisdiction to try a suit to which the final order has already been passed by the consolidated authorities. 
2. Whether the suit filed by the defendant was barred under Section 49 of Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953.
3. Whether the registered sale deed dated 1953 is valid
4. Whether the defendant was entitled to claim ownership over the disputed property. 

Arguments from the Petitioner’s side:

The learned counsel on behalf of the petitioner (Karbalai Begum) held that the petitioner lacked consent and prior information about the execution of the sale deed which was dated in the year 1953. 

It was put forward by the learned counsel that the petitioner had left her portion of the land under the responsibility of the brother-in-laws as constructive trustees, in exchange of their assurance that due care would be taken by them. However, they took opportunity of her trust and illegally deprived her from her own property. The defendants had mutated the whole land in their names and removed her names as a bhumidar. This process took place illegally without any consent and knowledge from the petitioner’s side. 

The petitioner argued before the trial court that civil court had jurisdiction in this case due to dispute related to title and ownership rights. Along with, it was argued that the defendant(s) was/were barred by the execution of the sale deed under the doctrine of lis pendens (under Section 52 of Transfer of Property Act, 1882). The petitioner had previously challenged the validity of the sale deed under consolidated authorities. 

With the above arguments, the petitioner’s counsel held the invalidity of the sale deed and it was resulted due to misrepresentation and wrongful entitlement. These actions violated the petitioner’s access to natural justice as she lacked the chance to contest against the mutation of the joint property, in which her share was even involved. Therefore, the petitioner’s counsel prayed before the court to grant her the legal rights and give back the property that got wrongfully possessed by the defendants. 

Arguments from the respondent’s side:

The learned counsel representing the respondent side opposed the arguments put forth by the petitioner’s counsel. 

The major point of contradiction was related to the execution of the sale deed. It was held that it was a registered sale deed, which rightfully denoted the legal validity of the document. The sale deed was executed with the consent and full knowledge of the petitioner. It was executed by the petitioner, Karbalai, in favour of her brother-in-law, Md. Sayeed(defendant). After which, the defendant remained in open and continuous possession of the disputed property. Therefore, after the sale, there remained no property in the name of the petitioner and hence, barred to claim co-bhumidari rights over the disputed property. 

In response to the petitioner counsel’s claim that the suit would be barred by the doctrine of lis pendens, the defendant counsel put forth counter-argument stating that the doctrine would not apply to the given suit as it was not registered. 

Further, it was held that the suit was barred by Section 49 of Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953, which stated that no civil courts could proceed with a matter related to consolidation, once the consolidation proceeding had begun. On this ground, the respondent counsel held the lack of jurisdictional basis of the civil courts as well as the Supreme Court to try the given suit. 

Judgment Pronounced:

The apex court overruled the decisions of both the trial court and civil court and held that the sale deed was invalid on the ground of lis pendens as mentioned under section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882. Since a proceeding was already pending with regards to the suit, no transfer could rightfully be taken place during such pendency. The court held that the petitioner, Karbalai, had not relinquished her rights and due to the doctrine of lis pendens, the sale deed would be have no effect of law. 

The apex court, in contrary to the decision of the lower courts, opined that the case related to the title and ownership of the property, thereby stating that it could not be settled by the consolidation authorities alone. This decision led to the rejection of respondent side’s argument that the suit was barred under section 49 of the Uttar Pradesh Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1953. 

Therefore, the apex court ruled  in favour of the petitioner. The court allowed the appeal and set aside the previous judgments of lower court, thereby restoring plaintiff right over the her share of the property. The respondents were directed to pay for the legal costs incurred by the petitioner in filing the case. 

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the Supreme Court took a nuanced approach to protect the rights of the widow which were perished by her brother-in-laws. The defendants took advantage of her vulnerable condition and captured her portion of the property.  This judgment even gave an understanding to the cases that could be rightfully dealt by the consolidated property. Here, since the matter involved the dispute related to title and ownership as well, it led the civil courts as well, to exercise their jurisdiction over the matter. 

Overall, this decision will set a powerful precedence for future legal disputes, related to property rights in India. Further, this restores the trust of the individuals over the judiciary system to ensure that the individual rights are not unnecessarily trampled over by other individuals.