In Brief
The Supreme Court allowed the appellants' appeals in a property dispute involving land allegedly leased by a Gram Panchayat to the respondents in 1959. The respondents sought permanent injunction restraining the appellants from interfering with their possession, but did not seek a declaration of title. The Court held that where title is disputed and the plaintiff claims rights through a lease document, proof of title is necessary for injunction relief. The respondents failed to properly prove the lease deed (only produced a copy and two witnesses) and did not implead the Gram Panchayat as a party, whose authority to lease government grazing land was itself questioned. The Court set aside the lower courts' decrees and restored the Trial Court's dismissal of the suit, holding that a mere suit for injunction without declaration is not maintainable when title is contested.
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