Amended pre-emption law bars an inferior pre-emptor from challenging a decree or seeking enhancement of pre-emption money.
Amended pre-emption law was applied to displace the appellants' proprietary claim, leaving them with no surviving right to obtain a decree of pre-emption or to challenge the High Court decree in favour of superior pre-emptors. As inferior pre-emptors, their entitlement could arise only after non-compliance by the superior claimants, and that contingency did not exist. The scheme of the Punjab Pre-emption Act and Order 20, Rule 14 CPC was also treated as barring inconsistent pre-emption decrees for different amounts in the same sale. The appellants therefore could not seek enhancement of the pre-emption money in a rival pre-emptors' appeal.
Issues: (i) whether, in view of the Punjab Pre-emption Act as amended, the appellants retained any right to claim a decree of pre-emption or to challenge the High Court decree; (ii) whether the appellants could seek enhancement of the pre-emption money in the appeal preferred by the rival pre-emptors.
Issue (i): Whether, in view of the Punjab Pre-emption Act as amended, the appellants retained any right to claim a decree of pre-emption or to challenge the High Court decree.
Analysis: Section 31 of the Punjab Pre-emption Act as amended was held to operate so as to require the appellate court to give effect to the substantive provisions of the amending Act. On that footing, the appellants, whose pre-emption claim based on proprietary status stood displaced by the amendment, could not secure a decree of pre-emption in their favour. Their position as an inferior pre-emptor also meant that their right, if any, could arise only after failure of the superior pre-emptors to comply with the decree. Since the High Court decree in favour of the superior pre-emptors was effective and was said to have been complied with, the appellants could not be treated as aggrieved by it.
Conclusion: The appellants had no surviving right to a decree of pre-emption and no locus standi to challenge the High Court decree.
Issue (ii): Whether the appellants could seek enhancement of the pre-emption money in the appeal preferred by the rival pre-emptors.
Analysis: The scheme of Section 28 of the Punjab Pre-emption Act read with Order 20, Rule 14 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 was treated as not permitting inconsistent decrees of pre-emption in favour of rival claimants for different amounts in respect of the same sale. Allowing such a course would create conflicting determinations of value and would disregard the statutory order in which rival pre-emptors could exercise the right. The appellants' contention that the trial court decree in their favour had become final was rejected on the ground that the consolidated appeal concerned the rights of all rival pre-emptors and the High Court decree governed the final position.
Conclusion: The appellants could not maintain a challenge seeking enhancement of the pre-emption money.
Final Conclusion: The appeal failed on the preliminary objection because the appellants had no enforceable right to appeal against the High Court decree and could not obtain any pre-emption relief in their favour.
Ratio Decidendi: An appellate court must apply the amended pre-emption law retrospectively where so directed, and a rival pre-emptor with no surviving or enforceable right of pre-emption lacks locus standi to challenge a decree merely to alter the amount fixed for a superior pre-emptor.
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