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PETITIONER: MIR FAKIR MOHD.

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: STATE OF WEST BENGAL

DATE OF JUDGMENT15/02/1978

BENCH: SARKARIA, RANJIT SINGH BENCH: SARKARIA, RANJIT SINGH KAILASAM, P.S.

CITATION:  1978 AIR 1072            1978 SCR  (3)   9  1978 SCC  (2)  36

ACT: West Bengal Estate Acquisition Act, 1954 s. 6 (1)(f)--Bamboo garden or banana plantation whether an ’Orchard’ within  the meaning of s. 6(1)(f) of the Act entitling an  intermediary, to retain the land as such.

HEADNOTE: The  petitioner’s claim, by virtue of the, provisions of  s. 6(1)(f) of the West Bengal Estate Acquisition Act, 1954, for his  entitlement, as an intermediary, to retain the land  in which  he  has raised in addition to mango  and  Jack  fruit trees, bamboo clumps and also banana-plants, was allowed  by the Courts below but rejected by the Calcutta High Court  in appeal  by  the State of West Bengal.  The High  Court  held that  though cultivated bamboo garden would fall within  the definition of ’Agricultural land’ in s. 2(b) of the Act,  it cannot in any view be called an ’Orchard’ within the purview of  s.  6(t)(f) of the Act.  It further held that  a  banana plantation is not an ’Orchard’ because banana plants are not fruit-trees. Dismissing the special leave petition the Court, HELD  :  1. In view of clause (p) of Section 2 of  the  West Bengal  Estate Acquisition Act, 1954 read with s. 14K(e)  of the   West  Bengal  Land  Reforms  Act,  the  existence   of cultivated fruit trees on a compact area, is central to  the connotation  of  ’Orchard’.  A tree is  "a  perennial  plant having  a  self-supporting woody main stem or  trunk  (which usually  develops  wood branches at some distance  from  the ground), and growing to a considerable height." [10.H, 11 A- B] (2)  A  plant to come within the connotation of ’tree’  must have  two  essential  characteristics  :  (a)  It  must   be perennial  and not seasonal; and (b) Its main stem  must  be "woody"  and not herbacious or pulpy.  A banana plant  lacks both  these characteristics.  It is not a  perennial  plant, but  is more in the nature of seasonal crop lasting for  one or  one and a quarter years.  Once the :plant yields  fruit, it  becomes  useless and does not yield any  further  fruit. Further,   its   stem  is  not  "woody"  but   "fleshy"   or ’herbacious".  A banana plant, therefore, cannot be regarded as a fruit-tree and a banana plantation is not an  ’Orchard’ within the contemplation of s. 6(1)(f) of the Act. [11  B-C,

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E]

JUDGMENT: CIVIL  APPELLATE  JURISDICTION  :  Special  Leave   Petition (Civil) No. 2107 of 1977. (From  the Judgment and Decree dt. 21-7-76 of  the  Calcutta High  ’Court  in Appeal from Appellate Decree  No.  1658  of 1965). Purshottam Chatterjee & Rathin Das for the Petitioner. S. C. Majumdar & G. S. Chatterjee for the Respondent. The order of the Court was delivered by SARKARIA,  J.  The principal question that has  been  mooted before us in this petition for special leave to appeal under Article  136  of  the  Constitution,  against  an  appellate judgment  dated  21st  July,  1976  of  the  High  Court  at Calcutta,  is, whether a bamboo garden or banana  plantation is  an ’Orchard’ within the meaning of Section 6(1) (f),  of the  West Bengal Estate Acquisition Act,  1954  (hereinafter referred to 2-211 SCI/78 10 as  the Act).  The material portion of Section 6 of the  Act reads as under :               "6(1)  Notwithstanding anything  contained  in               Section 4 and 5, an intermediary shall  except               in the cases mentioned in the proviso to  sub-               section (2) but subject to other provisions of               that  sub-section, be entitled to retain  with               effect from the date of vesting-               (f)   subject to the provisions of  subsection               (3) Land comprised.in tea garden or orchard or               land  used  for  the  purpose  of  live  stock               breeding, poultry farming or dairy."               The   petitioner  claims  himself  to  be   an               intermediary.    The  High  Court   has   held               (reversing the judgments of the courts  below)               that  a  cultivated bamboo garden  would  fall               within  the definition of ’Agricultural  land’               in  Section 2(b) of the Act and cannot in  any               view be called an ’orchard’ within the purview               of  Section 6(1) (f) of the Act.   It  further               held  that  a  banana  plantation  is  not  an               ’orchard’ because banana plants are not fruit-               trees.               Mr.  Purshotham Chatterjee, appearing for  the               petitioner  contends  that ’orchard’  has  not               been   defined  in  the  Act,  and  we   must,               therefore, interpret the expression  ’orchard,               in  its  popular sense and not in  the  strict               botanical  sense, as the High Court has  done.               An  ’orchard’,  it  is argued;  in  the  broad               Dictionary  sense,  means a  garden  of  fruit               plants,  or fruit trees, and a  banana  plant,               according to the Concise Oxford Dictionary, is               a "fruit-tree."               As  against this, Mr. Majumdar, appearing  for               the  Respondent State, submits that  a  banana               plant is not a ’tree’ but a herbacious plant.               We   are  unable  to  accept  the   contention               canvassed   on  behalf  of   the   petitioner.               Section 2(p) of the Act provides :               "  (p)  Expressions used in this Act  and  not               otherwise  defined  have in  relation  to  the

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             areas  to which the Bengal Tenancy Act,  1885,               applies,  the same meaning as in that Act  and               in relation to other areas meaning as  similar               thereto  as the existing law relating to  land               tenures applying’ to such areas, permits."               Now,  Section 14K(e) of the West  Bengal  Land               Reforms Act (as amended) defines an  ’Orchard’               to mean :               "A  compact area of land having fruit  bearing               trees  grown thereon in such number that  they               preclude; or when fully grown would  preclude,               a  substantial  part of such land  from  being               used for any agricultural purpose." In  view of clause (p) of Section 2 of the Act, it will  not be wrong to look to this definition in the Land Reforms Act, for   guidance.    This  definition,  it   will   be   seen, substantially conforms to the dictionary meaning of the term ’orchard’.  According to the Oxford Dictionary, 11 the  modern connotation of ’orchard’ is "an  enclosure  with fruit trees", or "an enclosure for the cultivation of  fruit trees".   Webster’s  New World Dictionary, also,  gives  its meaning as "an area of land, generally enclosed, devoted  to the  cultivation  of fruit trees, nut  trees,".   Thus,  the existence  of cultivated fruit trees on a compact  area,  is central  to  the  connotation of  ’orchard’.   The  question before  us,  therefore, resolves into the issue,  whether  a banana  plant  is  a ’tree’ ? A  ’tree’,  according  to  the Shorter  Oxford Dictionary, is "a perennial plant  having  a self-supporting  woody  main stem or  trunk  (which  usually develops  wood branches at some distance from  the  ground), and growing to a considerable height. Thus, for a plant to come within the connotation of  ’tree’, it must have two essential characteristics : (a) It must  be ’perennial  and not seasonal; and (b) Its main stem must  be ’woody’ and not herbacious or pulpy. A banana plant lacks  both these characteristics.  It is not a  perennial plant, but is more in the nature of a  seasonal crop  lasting for one or one and a quarter years.  Once  the plant  yields fruit, it becomes useless and does  not  yield any  further  fruit.  Further, its stem is not  ’woody’  but ’fleshy’ or ’herbacious’. Banana plant, according to Webster’s Dictionary, is "a tree- like  perennial  herb  of the genus  Musa  plant  with  soft herbacious  stalk".   Oxford Dictionary, no  doubt,  loosely describes  it as a ’fruit-tree’ belonging to the genus  Musa sapientum, but it also concedes that it has no ’woody’  stem or  trunk but only a soft herbacious stalk.   The  Webster’s Dictionary appears to be more correct when it uses the  word ’tree-like’ for a banana plant. Thus  considered,  a banana plant cannot be  regarded  as  a fruit  tree.   Therefore,  a banana  plantation  is  not  an ’orchard’  within the contemplation of Section 6(1)  (f)  of the Act. We are, therefore, of opinion that the High Court was  right in deciding that point against the petitioner.  There is  no ground  to interfere with its decision.  The petition  fails and is dismissed. S.R. Petition dismissed’ 12