Post-notification partition cannot defeat statutory acquisition where the Act voids contrary transfers and compromises after notification.

A partition or compromise made after publication of a notification under the Maharashtra Resettlement of Project Displaced Persons Act, 1976 could not be recognised to reduce the notified holding. Section 12 bars any transfer, sub-division or partition of notified land after the Section 11 notification unless prior permission is obtained, and declares contrary transactions void and inoperative. A private compromise entered into after notification therefore cannot alter the holding for statutory purposes, and the plea of relation back to an earlier suit date was rejected because it cannot override an express legislative prohibition. The post-notification compromise was ineffective and could not be used to defeat acquisition.

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Issues: Whether a partition or compromise effected after publication of the notification under Section 11(1) of the Maharashtra Resettlement of Project Displaced Persons Act, 1976 could be recognised to reduce the holding and avoid acquisition under the Act.

Analysis: Section 12 prohibits transfer, sub-division or partition of notified land after publication of the notification under Section 11, unless permission is obtained. Any transfer, sub-division or partition made in contravention of that prohibition is declared void and inoperative. The compromise relied upon by the appellant was entered into after the notification under Section 11(1), so it could not be used to alter the holding for the purpose of the statutory scheme. The plea that the compromise related back to the date of the earlier suit was rejected because the legislative command expressly barred post-notification partition, and a private arrangement cannot defeat a mandatory statutory restriction.

Conclusion: The post-notification compromise was ineffective and could not be taken into account to defeat acquisition.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statute expressly prohibits partition or transfer after a specified notification and declares any contrary transaction void, a later compromise or partition cannot operate by relation back to override the statutory bar.

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