The Allahabad High Court on Thursday reserved its order on the maintainability of megastar Amitabh Bachchan's petition challenging a Faizabad court order cancelling allotment of his farmland in Barabanki district.
The petition came up before Justice D P Singh of the Lucknow Bench of High Court who heard arguments of the counsels for Bachchan and the state government.
Senior Supreme Court lawyer Mukul Rohtagi, appearing for Bachchan, argued that his client was not provided an opportunity of being heard in the matter by the commissioner's court.
UP government counsel D K Upadhyaya submitted that a 'clear cut fraud' was committed in the transfer of land in Daulatpur village and pleaded for the petition to be dismissed with costs.
Rohatgi said the Faizabad Additional Commissioner V S Prasad exceeded his jurisdiction by going into the merits of the case whereas he was only to decide upon a technical point.
He said Bachchan was not even given an opportunity of being heard before the matter was decided which was a 'gross violation of the principles of natural justice'.
Upadhyaya however pleaded that the petition was not maintainable as the Commissioner's court had full jurisdiction to hear the matter.
Prasad had, on June 1, quashed the transfer of land in the name of Bachchan and termed the proceeding as illegal and fraudulent.
He had also quashed the stay order given on April 26, 2006 by the District magistrate R Sahu who took over subsequently.
He directed to Barabanki district administration to vest the land transferred in Bachchan's name to the gram sabha of Daulatpur.
