Occupancy rights in shamilat deh cannot be claimed by joint owners where tenancy is not established and the statutory bar applies.

Occupancy rights under the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887 are confined to tenants and cannot be claimed by joint owners or co-sharers in shamilat deh where Section 10 bars such claims. The phrase "any person" in Section 8 does not override the statutory scheme or remove the express restriction against joint owners acquiring occupancy rights in jointly owned land absent a contrary custom. The recorded position of the claimants as joint owners or co-sharers, rather than tenants, and the absence of any created tenancy, meant the Punjab Occupancy Tenants (Vesting of Proprietary Rights) Act, 1952 and the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1961 did not extend proprietary benefit to them.

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Issues: Whether joint owners or co-sharers in shamilat deh could claim occupancy rights under Sections 5 and 8 of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, notwithstanding the bar under Section 10 and the scheme of the Punjab Occupancy Tenants (Vesting of Proprietary Rights) Act, 1952 and the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1961.

Analysis: The right of occupancy under the Tenancy Act is available to a tenant, and the expression "any person" in Section 8 cannot be read in isolation to override the statutory scheme. Section 10 specifically bars a joint owner from acquiring occupancy rights in jointly owned land in the absence of a contrary custom. The material on record showed that the appellants and their predecessors were recorded as joint owners or co-sharers in shamilat deh and not as tenants, and no tenancy was created by agreement. The provisions of the 1952 Act also did not assist them because the benefit of proprietary vesting is confined to an occupancy tenant as defined by that Act. The claim under Section 4(3)(ii) of the 1961 Act likewise did not displace the bar created by Section 10 where the claimants were joint owners.

Conclusion: Joint owners or co-sharers in shamilat deh cannot claim occupancy rights under Sections 5 and 8 of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887 when Section 10 applies and no tenancy is established; the claim fails.

Ratio Decidendi: A statutory provision conferring occupancy rights on a tenant cannot be used by a recorded joint owner or co-sharer to defeat an express legislative bar against joint owners acquiring occupancy rights in jointly owned land.

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