Tenants of Sir and sub-tenants of occupancy tenants of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, and of tenants holding land with Patta Dawami or Istamrari and with right of transfer by sale

(1) Every tenant of Sir and sub-tenant of an occupancy tenant under section 5 of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, or sub-tenant of a tenant holding land under a Patta Dawami or Istamrari, with right of transfer by sale, who in the fasli year immediately before the commencement of this Act, is recorded as a tenant of Sir or as a sub-tenant, shall be deemed to be a non-occupancy tenant of the land held by him at the rate of rent payable by him in the said year and the land held by such tenant and sub-tenant shall not for the purposes of section 11 be available to the Sirholder, of occupancy tenant under section 5 of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, or to the Pattadar Dawami or Istamrari for acquisition of Bhumidhari rights. (2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall apply to a tenant of Sir or a sub-tenant of occupancy tenant under section 5 of the Punjab Tenancy Act or of the said Pattadar, if his landholder belongs to any of the following categories of persons: (i) a woman, (ii) a minor, (iii) a lunatic, (iv) an idiot, (v) a person incapable of cultivation by reason of blindness or physical infirmity, or (vi) a person in the armed forces of the Indian Union, both at the commencement of tenancy and on the commencement of this Act, (vii) a person prosecuting studies in a recognized institution and not exceeding 25 years in age, or (viii) a person under detention or imprisonment, in the commencement of this Act: Provided that where a holding is held jointly by several landholders of whom one or more but not all are persons belonging to any of the above categories, nothing in sub-section (1) shall apply to the share of these persons in the holding and such share shall be available for the acquisition of Bhumidhari rights by these persons.