Mandatory resale on bidder default under land revenue law: failure to deposit the immediate bid amount requires cancellation and re-auction.

Section 167 of the U. P. Land Revenue Act, 1901 was treated as mandatory: if the highest bidder failed to deposit twenty-five per cent of the bid immediately, the land had to be put up and sold again. The authority had no discretion to ignore that default or to sustain the sale without ordering a resale. On the bidder's failure to make the required deposit, the sale was liable to be cancelled and re-auction directed; the contrary order was held to rest on an error of law and was quashed.

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Issues: Whether, on the highest bidder's failure to deposit twenty-five per cent of the bid immediately, the Collector was bound to direct a resale under section 167 of the U. P. Land Revenue Act, 1901.

Analysis: Section 167 required immediate deposit of twenty-five per cent of the bid by the person declared purchaser, and on default the land was to be forthwith put up and sold again. The provision was treated as mandatory, leaving no discretion to ignore the default or to sustain the sale without ordering a resale. Since the bidder failed to make the required deposit, the authorities were bound to cancel the sale and direct re-auction. The Commissioner's order, which declined to sustain the resale direction on the ground of irregularity, ignored the mandatory consequence flowing from the statutory default.

Conclusion: The impugned order was vitiated by an error of law and was liable to be quashed; the writ petitions succeeded in favour of the petitioner.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statute makes resale mandatory on the purchaser's default in depositing the prescribed earnest amount immediately, the authority has no discretion to uphold the sale without ordering a re-sale.

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