Maharashtra act 042 of 1953 : The Maharashtra Personal Inams Abolition Act.

Section 1.Short title, extent and commencement.

(1) This Act may be called the ¹[Maharashtra Personal Inams Abolition Act].

(2) It extends to the ²[Bombay area of the State of Maharashtra] excluding the merged territories.

(3) It shall come into force on such date³ as the State Government may by notification in the Official Gazette specify in this behalf.

1 This short title was amended by Mah. 24 of 2012, schedule 3, entry 49, w.e.f. 1.5.1960.

2 These words were substituted for the words "Pre-Reorganisation State of Bombay excluding the transferred territories and" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

3 This Act came into force w.e.f. 1st August 1953 by G.N.R.D No. 3626/49 dated 22nd June 1953, (B. G. Pt. IV-B, P.1254).

Section 2.Definitions.

(1) In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context,-

(a) "appointed dated" means the date on which this Act comes into force ;

(b) "Code" means the Bombay Land Revenue Code, 1879 (Bom. V of 1879) ;

¹[(ba) "Collector" includes an Officer appointed by the State Government to perform the functions and exercise the powers of the Collector under this Act ;]

(d) "inam village" or "inam land" means a village or a portion of a village or land, as the case may be, held by a person under a personal inam ;

(e) "personal inam" means,-

(i) a grant of a village, portion of a village, ²[land (including any share in the revenues of a village or any portion thereof or land) or] total or partial exemption from the payment of land revenue entered as personal inam in the alienation register kept under section 53 of the code ;

(ii) a grant of money or land revenue including anything payable as a cash allowance on the part of the State Government in respect of any right, privilege, perquisite or office and entered as class I, II, III, IV or V in the records kept under the rules made under the Pensions Act, 1871 (XXIII of 1871).

Explanation.- If any question arises whether any grant is a personal inam, such question shall be referred to the State Government and the decision of the State Government shall be final ³[and the entry, if any, in respect of such grant in the alienation register kept under section 53 of the Code shall be deemed to have been amended accordingly] ;

(f) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act ;

(g) "Schedule" means a Schedule appended to this Act.

(2) The other words and expressions used but not defined in this Act shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Code.

1. This clause was inserted by Bom. 9 of 1954, s. 2.

2. This portion was substituted and deemed always to have been substituted for the words "land or" by Mah. 43 of 1961, s. 2.

3. These words and figures were inserted and shall be deemed always to have been inserted by Bom. 40 of 1956 s. 4, Second Schedule.

Section 3.Act not to apply to certain inams and grants.

Nothing in this Act shall apply to-

(1) saranjams, jahagirs and other political inams ;

(2) devastan inams or inams held by religious or charitable institutions ;

(3) inams held for service useful to Government ;

(4) inams held for service useful to the community ; and

(5) revenue free sites granted by Government for the construction of schools, colleges, hospitals, dispensaries, religious or charitable institutions or other public works from which no profit is intended to be derived.

¹[Explanation.- For the purposes of this section inams held by religious or charitable institutions mean Devasthan or Dharmadaya inams granted or recognised by the ruling authority for the time being for a religious or charitable institution and entered as such in the alienation register kept under section 53 of the Code or in the records kept under the rules made under the Pensions Act, 1871 (XXIII of 1871).]

1. This Explanation was inserted and shall be deemed always to have been inserted, by Bom. 40 of 1956, s. 4, Second Schedule.

Section 4.Abolition of personal inams and rights in respect of such inams.

Notwithstanding anything contained in any usage, settlement, grant, sanad or order or a decree or order of a Court or any law for the time being in force, with effect from and on the appointed date,-

(i) all personal inams shall be deemed to have been extinguished,

(ii) save as expressly provided by or under the provisions of this Act, all rights legally subsisting on the said date in respect of such personal inams shall be deemed to have been extinguished :

Provided that in the case of a personal inam consisting of exemption from the payment of land revenue only, either wholly or in part, such exemption shall be deemed to have been extinguished-

(a) if the amount of such exemption is or exceeds Rs. 5,000 with effect from the 1^st day of August 1953 ; and

(b) in all other cases, with effect from the 1^st day of August 1955.

Section 5.Liability of inam village or inam land to payment of land revenue and inamdar and permanent holder to be occupant.

(1) All inam villages or inam lands are and shall be liable to the payment of land revenue in accordance with the provisions of the Code and the rules made thereunder and the provisions of the Code and the rules relating to unalienated land shall apply to such lands.

(2) (a) An inamdar in respect of the inam land in his actual possession or in possession of a person holding from him other than an inferior holder, referred to in clause (b) below, or

(b) an inferior holder holding inam land on payment of annual assessment only, shall primarily be liable to the State Government for the payment of land revenue due in respect of such land held by him and shall be entitled to all the rights and shall be liable to all obligations in respect of such land as an occupant under the Code or the rules made thereunder or any other law for the time being in force.

Section 6.Compensation for abolition of cash allowance.

Notwithstanding anything contained in any law, usage, settlement, grant, sanad or order but subject to the provisions of this Act, a sum equal to seven times ¹[the amount of share in the revenues of a village or any portion thereof or land referred to in section 2(1) (e) (i), or as the case may be], the amount of cash allowance referred to in section 2(1) (e) (ii), if any, due to an inamdar as personal inam shall be paid to him as compensation in consideration of the extinguishment of his right to receive ²[such share or allowance].

1. This portion was inserted by Mah. 43 of 1961, s.3 (a).

2. These words were substituted for the words "such allowance" Mah. 43 of 1961, s.3 (b).

Section 7.All public roads, etc., situate in inam villages to vest in Government.

All public roads, lanes and paths, the bridges, ditches, dikes and fences, on, or beside, the same, the bed of the sea and of harbours, creeks below high water mark, and of rivers, streams, nallas, lakes, wells and tanks, and all canals, and water courses, and all standing and flowing water, all unbuilt village site lands, all waste lands and all uncultivated lands (excluding lands used for building or other non-agricultural purposes), which are situate within the limits of any inam village or inam land shall, except in so far as any rights of any person other than inamdar may be established in or over the same and except as may otherwise be provided by any law for the time being in force, vest in and shall be deemed to be with all rights in or over the same or appertaining thereto, the property of the State Government and all rights held by an inamdar in such property shall be deemed to have been extinguished and it shall be lawful for the Collector subject to the general or special orders of the State Government, to dispose them of as he deems fit, subject always to the rights of a way and other rights of the public or of individuals legally subsisting.

Explanation.- For the purposes of this section, land shall be deemed to be uncultivated if it has not been cultivated for a continuous period of three years immediately before the appointed date.

Section 8.Right to trees.

The rights to trees specially reserved under the Indian Forest Act, 1927 (XVI of 1927), or any other law for the time being in force, except those the ownership of which has been transferred by the State Government under any contract, grant or law for the time being in force shall vest in the State Government and nothing in this Act shall in any way affect the right of the State Government to apply the provisions of the Indian Forest Act, 1927 (XVI of 1927), as in force in the ¹[Bombay area of the State of Maharashtra] to forests in an inam village or inam land.

1. These words were substituted for "pre-Reorganisation State of Bombay excluding the transferred territories" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 9.Deleted.

¹* * * *

1. section 9 was deleted by Mah. 16 of 1985, s.15.

Section 10.Compensation to inamdars for extinguishment of rights under section 7.

(1) Any inamdar having any right or interest in any property referred to in section 7 shall be entitled to compensation in the manner provided in the following paragraphs, namely :-

(a) within a period of twelve months from the appointed date, the inamdar shall apply in writing to the Collector stating the nature of his right or interest, the grounds of his claim and the amount of compensation claimed by him for the extinguishment of his right or interest ;

(b) the Collector shall hold a formal inquiry in the manner provided in the code and if the Collector is satisfied that the applicant had any right or interest in the property and that such right or interest has been extinguished under section 7, he shall make an award in the manner prescribed in section 11 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (I of 1894), subject to the following conditions, namely :-

(i) if the property in question is waste or uncultivated but is culturable land the amount of compensation shall not exceed three times the assessment of the land :

Provided that if the land has not been assessed the amount of compensation shall not exceed such amount of assessment as would be leviable in the same village on the same extent of similar land used for the same purpose ;

(ii) if the property in question is land over which the public has been enjoying or acquired a right of way or any individual has any right of easement, the amount of compensation shall not exceed the amount of the annual assessment leviable in the village for uncultivated land in accordance with the rules made under the Code or if such rules do not provide for the levy of such assessment such amount as in the opinion of the Collector shall be the market value of the right or interest held by the claimant ;

(iii) if there are any trees or structures on the land, the amount of compensation shall be the market value of such trees or structures, as the case may be.

Explanation.- for the purposes of this section the "market value" shall mean the value as estimated in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 23 and section 24 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (I of 1894) in so far as the said provisions may be applicable.

(2) Every award made under sub-section (1) shall be in the form prescribed in section 26 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (I of 1894), and the provisions of the said Act shall, so far as may be, apply to the making of such award.

Section 11.Appeal against Collector’s award.

An appeal shall lie against an award of the Collector to the ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal constituted under the Bombay Revenue Tribunal Act, 1957(Bom. XXXI of 1958)], notwithstanding anything contained in the said Act.

1. This portion was substituted for "Bombay Revenue Tribunal constituted under the Bombay Revenue Tribunal Act, 1939" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 12.Procedure before Revenue Tribunal.

(1) The ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] shall, after giving notice to the Appellant and the State Government, decide the appeal and record its decision.

(2) In deciding an appeal under this Act the ²[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] shall exercise all the powers which a Court has and shall follow the same procedure which a Court follows in deciding appeals from the decree or order of an original Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (V of 1908).

1. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

2. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 13.Limitation.

Every appeal made under this Act to the ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] shall be filed within a period of sixty days from the date of the award of the Collector. The provisions of sections 4, 5, 12 and 14 of the Indian Limitation Act, 1908 (IV of 1908), shall apply to the filing of such appeal.

1. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 14.Court-fees.

Notwithstanding anything contained in the Court-fees Act, 1870 (VII of 1870), every appeal made under this Act to the ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] shall bear a court-fee stamp of such value as may be prescribed.

1. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 15.Finality of award and decision of Revenue Tribunal.

The award made by the Collector subject to an appeal to the ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] and the decision of the ²[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] on the appeal shall be final and conclusive and shall not be questioned in any suit or proceeding in any Court.

1. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

2. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 16.Inquiries and proceedings to be judicial proceedings.

All inquiries and proceedings before the Collector and the ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal] under this Act shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings within the meaning of sections 193, 219 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code (XLV of 1860).

1. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 16A.Method of compensation for extinguishment of certain rights.

¹[16A. Method of compensation for extinguishment of certain rights.- (1) Any inamdar having any right or interest in the share in the revenues referred to in section 2(1) (e) (i) shall, within a period of twelve months from the commencement of the Bombay Personal Inams Abolition (Amendment) Act, 1961 (Mah. XLIII of 1961), make an application in the prescribed form to the Collector stating the amount of or his right or interest in the share, the grounds of his claim and the amount of compensation claimed by him for the extinguishment thereof.

(2) The Collector shall, after holding a formal inquiry in the manner provided by the Code, make an award, determining the amount of compensation.

(3) An appeal shall lie from the said award to the Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal.

(4) The provisions of sections 10 to 16 (both inclusive) shall, so far as may be, apply to the proceedings in respect of such award or appeal, as the case may be.]

1. Section 16A was inserted by Mah. 43 of 1961, s. 4.

Section 17.Method of compensation for abolition, etc., of other rights in property.

(1) If any person is aggrieved by the provisions of this Act as abolishing, extinguishing or modifying any of his rights to or interest in property and if compensation for such abolition, extinguishment or modification has not been provided for in the provisions of this Act, such person may apply to the Collector for compensation.

(2) The application under sub-section (1) shall be made to the Collector in the prescribed form within twelve months from the appointed date. The Collector shall, after holding a formal inquiry in the manner provided by the Code, make an award determining the compensation in the manner and according to the method provided for in sub-section (1) of section 23 and section 24 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (I of 1894).

(3) An appeal shall lie from the said award to the ¹[Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal].

(4) The provisions of sections 10 to 16 (both inclusive) shall, so far as may be, apply to the proceedings in respect of such award or appeal, as the case may be.

(5) Nothing in this section shall entitle any person to compensation on the ground that any inam village or inam land which has wholly or partially exempt from the payment of land revenue has been under the provisions of this Act made subject to the payment of full assessment in accordance with the provisions of the Code.

1. These words were substituted for the words "Bombay Revenue Tribunal" by the Maharashtra Adaptation of Laws (State and Concurrent Subjects) Order, 1960.

Section 17A.Amount of compensation to be payable in transferable bonds.

¹[17A. Amount of compensation to be payable in transferable bonds.- The amount of compensation payable under the provisions of this Act shall be payable in transferale bonds carrying interest at the rate of three per cent. per annum from the date of the issue of such bonds and shall be repayable during a period of twenty years from the date of the issue of such bonds by equated annual instalments of principal and interest. The bonds shall be of such denominations and shall be in such forms as may be prescribed.]

1. This section was inserted by Bom. 9 of 1954, s. 3.

Section 18.Provisions of Bom. LXVII of 1948 to govern the relations of inamdar and tenants.

Nothing in this Act shall in any way be deemed to affect the application of any of the provisions of the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948 (Bom. LXVII of 1948), to any inam village or inam land or the mutual rights and obligations of an inamdar and his tenants, save in so far as the said provisions are not in any way inconsistent with the express provisions of this Act.

Section 19.Rules.

The State Government may, subject to the condition of pervious publication, make rules for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of this Act. Such rules shall when finally made be published in the Official Gazette.

Section 20.Modification and discontinuance of application of certain enactments.

(1) With effect from and on the appointed date-

(a) the provisions of the enactments specified in Schedule I shall be repealed or amended to the extent specified in column 4 of the said Schedule ; and

(b) the provisions of the enactments specified in Schedule II shall cease to apply to all inam villages or inam lands and to inamdars.

(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall be deemed to affect,-

(a) any obligation or liability already incurred before the appointed date ;

(b) any proceeding in respect of such obligation or liability ; or

(c) anything done in the course of such proceeding in any Court on or before the aforesaid date and such proceeding may be continued and disposed of as if this Act has not been passed.