DISCLAIMER: This document is being furnished to you for your information by PRS Legislative Research (PRS). The contents of this document have been obtained from sources PRS believes to be reliable. These contents have not been independently verified, and PRS makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or correctness. In some cases the Principal Act and/or Amendment Act may not be available. Principal Acts may or may not include subsequent amendments. For authoritative text, please contact the relevant state department concerned or refer to the latest government publication or the gazette notification. Any person using this material should take their own professional and legal advice before acting on any information contained in this document. PRS or any persons connected with it do not accept any liability arising from the use of this document. PRS or any persons connected with it shall not be in any way responsible for any loss, damage, or distress to any person on account of any action taken or not taken on the basis of this document. The Tamil Nadu Estates Communal, Forest and Private Lands (Prohibition of Alienation) Act, 1947
Act 14 of 1947
Keyword(s):
Estate, Landholder, Forest Land, Impartible Estate
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1947 : T.N. Act ;rlIVl Estates Comund, Forest 969 and Private Land8 (Prohibition qf Alienation) '[TAMIL NADlJ] ACT No. XIV OF ' 1947 '. , , ' [THE '[TAMIL NADU] ESTATES COMMUNAL, ' FOREST
AND PRIVATE LANDS (PROHIBITIO)) OF ALIENATION)
ACT, 1947.1 <
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(Received the assent of the Governor-General on the 25th October 1947 ; first published in the Fort S t . George Gazette Extraordinary on the 25th October.
1947 .)
An Act to prohibit the alienation of communal, forest and private lands in qtates in the 3[State of Tamil Nadu].
WHEREAS it is necessary to prevent the indiscriminate alienation of communal, forest and private lands in estates in the 3[State of Tamil Nadu] pending the enactment of legislation for acquiring the interests of landholders in sttch estates and introducing the ryotwari settlement therein ; It is hereby enacted as follows :-
1. (1) This Act may be called the l[Tarnil Nadu Esrntes Communal, Forest and Private Lands (Prohi bition of Alienation) Act, 1947,
*[Tamil
~ a d u l (2) It extends tcj all estates in the '[State of Act I Tanlil Nndu] goven~ed by tlie '[Tamil Nadit] Estates 0f190g. Land Act, 1908.
(3) I t shall come into force at once. - --
1 These words were substituted for the word "Madras' by thc Tamil Nadu Adaptation of Laws Order, 1969, as amended by the Tanlil Nadu Adaptation of Laws (Second Aincndment) Ol'dcr, 1969.
2 For Statement of Objects and Kzasuns, see Fort St. George G ~ i e t t e Extraordinary, dated the 13th September 1947, Part IV-A, page 3.
a This expression wiU substituted for tho expression "Province:
( i f Madras" by the Tamil Nadu Adaptation of Laws Order, 1970, which wits dccmed to have come into focce on tht 14th January
1069.
This cxpressiol~ was ~\tbstitlited forbthe cxpl-ession *CState of hlntlrnnM by theTamilNadu ~ d a p t a t i o n b f Lnws Order, 1969, a9 anlendecl by the Tamil Nndu Adaptation of Laws (Second Amcnd- lllent) Order, 1969.
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9'70 Btates C o d , Forest 11947: T.N. Act XIV and Private Lands (Prohibition of Alienation)
2. In this Act, unless there is anything-repugnant in the subject or context--
(a) "estate", "landholder", "private I
"ryoti land" shall have the same respective m as in the l[Tamil NaduJ Estates Land Act, 1 and "communal land" means any land of the cription mentioned in section 3, clause (16), sub- ~flgog, clause (a) or sub-clause (b), of that Act ;
(b) "forest land" includes any waste land con- taining trees and shrubs, pasture land and any other class of land declared by the 2[State] Government to be forest land by notification in the Fort St. George
(c) "impartible estate" means any estate included, amil
in the Schedule to the l[Tamil Nadu] Impartiblegdul Estates Act, 1904, or subsequently declared to be an ~ c t 11 o f
impartible estate within the meaning of that Act, 1go4.
by an Act of the Legislature.
,f 3. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any n o f other law for the time being in force, no landholder shall sell, mortgage, convert into ryoti land, lease or otherwise assign or alienate-
(1.1) any communal or forest land in his estate without the previc~!~ sanctioil of the District Collector, on or after the date on which the Madr
Communal, Forest and Private Lands (Pro
of Alienation) Ordinance, 1947, came into namely, the 27th day of June 1947, or
(b) any private land it1 an impartible estate notified by the ?[State] Government in the Fort St. George Gazette, in pursuance of this clause or the -I--
i These words were substituted for the word 'IMadras" by the Tamil Nadu Adaptation pf Laws Order, 1969, as amended by the Tamil Nadu Adaptat~on o f Laws (Second Amendment) Order, 1969.
a This word wag substituted for the word "Provinofal" by tho Ad.ip(ation Oidcr of 1950.
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1947 : T.N. Act XI and Private h d p (Prohibition of Alienation)
corresponding clause in the Ordinance aforesaid,
An or after the date on which the estate was so notified :
. ceeding two years.
(2) Any landholder who has contravened or contravenes the provisions of sub-section (I) and any agent of the landholder who has abetted or abets such contravention shall be punishable with irn- prisonrnent which may extend to two years, or with h e which may extend tobfive thousand rupees, or - with both.
4. (1) Any transaction of the nature prohibited by nature
section 3 which took place, in the case of any com- specilied in munal or forest land, on or after the 31st day of TC.2yn3lObe
October 1939, and in the case of any private land in a notified estate, on or after the 1st day'of November -1945, shall be void and inoperative and shall not confer or take away, or be deemed to have conferred or taken away, any right whatever on or from any party to the transaction:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub- section shall be deemed to invalidate-
(i) any such transaction in respect of any forest land entered into before the 27th day of June 1947, in favour of any religious, charitable or edu- cational institution, or of any hospital, or of any 'local board, municipal co~mcil or co-operative society
Madras registered or deemed to be registered under the Madras
ACtV1 Co-operative Societies Act, 1932,* or of any other 1932' public body or institution ;
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972 Ebates ~omm&l, ~ore&fb47:
a d Private l;mrdr (Prohibition of A
religious, charitable or educational institution, or ofany hospital, or of any 'local board, municipal council or cooperative society registered or deemed to be regis- tered under the Madras Co-operative Societies Act, f;d~ 1932*, or of any other public body or institution ; ,f 1932,
(iii) any such transaction in respect of any ' forest or private land not exceeding twenty acres in extent, entered into, in the case of forest land, before the 27th day of June 1947, and in the case of private land, before the date on which the impartible estate I in which the land is situated is notified as aforesaid ; I (iv) any such transaction in respect of any forest or private land exceeding twenty acres in extent, 1 entered into before the respective dates specified in
,clause (iii), up to a limit of twenty acres chosen by
I the assignee or alienee, the choice being limited as
far as possible to contiguous land ;
I (v) any such transaction in respect of any
1 forest or private land entered into before the respective
dates specified in clause (iii), in favour of an assignee
l or alienee in good faith and for valuable consideration.
(2) Any choice made under clause (iv) of the proviso to sub-section (1) shall be communicated to the Collector of the district or such officer as may be authorized by him, in the case of forest land within three months from the date on which this Act comes into force and in the case of private land, within three months from that date or from the date on which the imparrible estate is notified as aforesaid, which- ever is later.
(3)'If any dispute arises as to the validity of the claim of any person to any land under clauses (i) to (v) of the proviso to sub-section (I), it shall be
open to such person or to any other person interested
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: ' 1941: T.N. ~ c t et;UV] Esrotih and Private Lands (Prohibition of ABmdon) h the transaction or to the '[State] Government, to apply to the District Judge of the district in which the land is situated, for a decision as to the validity of
ouch claim. + I (4) The District Judge to whom an2application is made under sub-section (3) shall, after giving notice to all the other persons concerned in the transaction or interested in the land and also, where the applica- tion is not made by the '[State] Government, to the '[State] Governrnenc, decide whether the claim to the land is valid or not ; and his decision shall be final.
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(5) The '[State] Government may, by notifi- cation in the Fort St. George Gazette, make rules for the purpose of carrying the provisions of this section into effect, and in particular as to the fees to be paid in respect of the applications referred to in sub-section
(3), and the procedure of the District Judge,
Central 5. Notwithstanding anything contained in section Power to Aa v 01 32 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898*, it shall enhancejurisdi- ction of First- '898. be lawful for any Magistrate of the first class ? specially empowered by the '[State] Government in this behalf to impos~
to impose a sentence of fine exceeding one thousand rupees for any offence under section 3.
6. No prosecution shall be instituted under this Dist
Act against any person without the previous sanction c.01
of the District Collector. sar I)f
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I This word was substituted for the word I' Provincial " by the Adaptation Order of 1950.
* See now the Code of Criminal Procedure. 1973 (Central Act 2 ef 1974), ?zctton 29.
Accord to clause (a) of sub-section (31,; of section 3 of the codo of iL procairn* !973 (am1 Act 2 of 1974). which came into form on the 1st Apnl1974, any r e f m m to a Magis- trate of the first clms shall be construed as a rdwnca to a Judicial
I Magiatrate of the flrst class.
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* 27."- * I T.N;L~ XIV Ahat ion)
7. No notification or order of the '[Sta tel Govern- / ment or of the Disbrict Collector under this Act shall E be liable to be questioned in any Court of Law.
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Povmto 9. Lf any difficulty arises in giving effect to the pro-
remove visions of this Act, the '[State] Government may, as
occasion may arise, by order do anything which appears to them necessary for the purpose of removing the difficulty.
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1 This word was s~trJtitut& for the word" PrcvinciJ " by the Adaptation Order of 1950.
r l'hia sedfm was rspsakd by section 2 of, and ths Fit S@haduir to tbe'hrd Nadu R o w and ~mrndi.0 Aot, 1952 CTpm~l *adu k cr X I of 1952).
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