THAKUR MANMOHAN DEO AND ANOTHER vs THE STATE OF BIHAR AND OTHERS.(AND CONNECTED APPEAL)

The Supreme Court held that the Bihar Land Reforms Act, 1950, applies to all ghatwali tenures, including government ghatwalis, as defined in Section 2 of the Act. The Court ruled that the Act pertains to property acquisition under Entry 36 of List II of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, thus affirming the legislative competence of the State Legislature. The principle that a special law regarding special tenures is unaffected by a general law was deemed inapplicable, as the Act's essence relates to property acquisition, not a repeal of the Bengal Regulation XXIX of 1814.