Kerala Land Assignment Special Rules | Successor-In-Interest Cannot Rake Up Claim After Long Lapse Of Time: Kerala HC
The Kerala High Court held that a successor-in-interest cannot rake up a claim under the Kerala Land Assignment (Regularisation of Occupation of Forest Lands Prior to 1-1-1977) Special Rules, 1993 (Special Rules) after a long lapse of time.
The petitioner had applied for the assignment of land in the Cardamom Hill Reserve (Reserve) invoking the provisions of the Kerala Land Assignment (Regularisation of Occupation of Forest Lands Prior to 1-1-1977) Special Rules, 1993 (Special Rules) in 2017 claiming that his predecessor-in-interest was in occupation of the land before 1977.
The petitioner claimed that the land was applied for leasing by his predecessor-in-interest for cardamom cultivation and the said occupation was acknowledged by the revenue authorities. On the other hand, the authorities argued that the land was not included in the list prepared under the Special Rules and there were no records to show that the land was included in the fair land register. Secondly, if assignment was given, it would adversely affect the Reserve.
A Division Bench of Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque and Justice Shoba Annamma Eapen observed, “if the applicant for assignment or his predecessor was in occupation prior to 1/1/1977, he will be eligible to apply for assignment provided that the land is included in the list of assignable lands under Rule 6. If the land is not included in the assignable list, no one can seek for assignment of the land coming under the meaning of land covered by Rule 2(f). The preparation of the list was a one-time exercise under Rule 6 as it has to be done by a joint verification of reports by revenue and forest.”
Advocate George Abraham represented the petitioner, while Addl. AG K.P. Jayachandran appeared for the respondents.
The High Court, while discussing the validity of the Special Rules, remarked that “In exercise of the powers conferred on the Government of Kerala under Section 7 of the Land Assignment Act, 1960, Government of Kerala made Rules for assignment, settlement and regularization of forest lands under occupation prior to first January 1977. The validity of these rules was questioned before this Court and the Apex Court.”
Rule 5 of the Special Rules states that the land sought for assignment under the Rules should have been in occupation of the assignee or predecessor-in-interest prior to 1977.
The Court clarified that the assignment of land to those who occupied it before 1977 was a one-time measure envisaged under the Special Rules. Eligibility for land assignment could be granted to the applicant or their predecessor, provided such land was included in the list of assignable lands. If the land is not on the list, assignment could not be sought. Occupants of unlisted land must raise objections promptly. The list cannot be expanded long after publication to claim land as assignable under the Special Rules.
The Court held that the occupation of the land by the petitioner was illegal as the land was not liable to be regularised under the Special Rules.
Accordingly, the High Court dismissed the writ petition.
Cause Title: Bijimon K.R. v. State of Kerala & Ors. (2024:KER:8017)
Appearance:
Petitioner: Advocates George Abraham, Joseph Gopuran, Joby D Joseph, and Mary Catherine Priyanka P.S.
Respondents: Addl. Advocate General K.P. Jayachandran