(1) This Act may be called the 1[Maharashtra Merged Territories (Janjira and Bhor) Khoti Tenure Abolition Act.]
(1) In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context-
With effect from and on the date on which this Act comes into force,-
1[3A. Abolition of Khoti tenure in Karle village in the merged territories of Janjira in Kolaba district.- On the commencement of the Bombay Merged Territories (Janjira and Bhor) Khoti Tenure Abolition (Amendment) Act, 1963 (Mah. XLII of 1963), the Watani Isafati Khoti tenure prevailing in the village Karle in the merged territories of Janjira included in the district of Kolaba shall be deemed to have been abolished; and subject to the provisions of this Act, any sanads granted (if any) or orders made or issued in respect of that village shall be deemed to have been cancelled and all incidents of the said tenure in that village shall be deemed to have been extinguished-any law, custom, usage or anything contained in any sanad, grant, settlement, kabulayat, lease, order (hukam) or any decree or order of any court or any other instrument, notwithstanding ; and thereupon, the provisions of this Act shall apply in relation to the abolition of the Watani Isafati Khoti tenure in the said village Karle as they apply to the abolition of the khoti tenure prevailing in the khoti villages in the merged territories of Janjira in the district of Kolaba with the modifications that-
In the merged territories of Janjira-
In the merged territories of Bhor-
Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 4 and 5, where a khoti land or khoti khasgi land is in the possession of a person (other than an occupancy tenant) holding under a khot on payment to the khot of rent equal to the amount of assessment fixed for such land, such person shall be entitled to the rights of an occupant in respect of such land on payment to the khot in the prescribed manner occupancy price equivalent to three multiples of the assessment fixed for such land :
(1) With effect from the date on which this Act comes into force, the land in respect of which any person is entitled to the rights of an occupant under section 4 or 5, as the case may be, shall be free from the liability for the payment of khot's dues in respect thereof and all rights of a khot in his capacity as a khot in such land shall be deemed to have been extinguished.
(1) An occupancy tenant shall be liable to pay in the prescribed manner and within the prescribed period the commuted value of the khot's dues which were payable by him immediately before the coming into force of this Act in respect of the land held by him. Such commuted value shall be estimated and paid in the manner specified in sub-sections (2) and (3).
(a) The amount of the occupancy price payable under section 4, if not paid to the State Government ; and
(1) Whenever an officer authorised by the State Government in this behalf so directs, a khot shall deliver to him or such other officer as may be specified in the direction, accounts and other records relating to the khoti village kept by him under the law for the time being applicable to the village.
For the removal of doubt, it is hereby declared that all uncultivated waste lands in a khoti village not appropriated by any khot and not entered in to the revenue or survey records as khoti or khoti khasgi, before the date on which this Act comes into force, and all other kinds of property referred to in section 37 of the Code, situate in a khoti village, which are not the property of the individuals or of any aggregate of persons legally capable of holding property and except in so far as any rights of such persons may be established in or over the same and except as may be otherwise provided in any law for the time being in force, are together with all rights in or over the same or appertaining thereto, the property of the State Government and it shall be lawful to dispose of or set apart the same by the authority in the manner and for the purpose provided in section 37 or 38 of the Code, as the case may be.
From the date on which this Act comes into force a khot shall not be entitled to acquire any right in any khoti land or khoti nisbat land by right of reversion.
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), 1[as in force in the 2[Bombay area of the State of Maharashtra]] to forests in a khoti village.
114. Method of compensation for extinguishment or modification of any rights and interests in land.- (1) If a khot or any other person is aggrieved by any of the provisions of this Act as extinguishing or modifying any of his rights to, or interests in, land and if such person proves that such extinguishment or modification amounts to transference to public ownership of any land or any right or interest in or over such land, such person may apply to the Collector for compensation.
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 (IX of 1908), shall apply to the filing of such appeal.
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[16A. Revisional Powers in respect of awards made before commencement of Bom. XCIII of 1958.-Where any award was made under sub-section (3) of section 14 before the commencement of the Bombay Land Tenure Abolition (Amendment) Act, 1958 (Bom. XCIII of 1958) and no appeal was filed against such award under sub-section (4) of section 14, then notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (6) of section 14, the State Government may call for the record of the inquiry or proceedings relating to such award for the purpose of satisfying itself as to the legality, propriety or regularity of such inquiry or proceedings and if after giving the interested parties an opportunity to be heard, it is not satisfied as to the legality, propriety or regularity of such inquiry or proceedings, it may cancel the award and direct the Collector to make a fresh award and thereupon all the provisions of this Act relating to the making of an award, the finality of such award and the appeal against such award shall mutatis mutandis apply to such fresh award.]
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).
The amount of compensation payable under the provisions of this Act shall be payable in transferable 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 the period of twenty years from the date of the issue of such bonds by equated annual installments of principal and interest. The bonds shall be of such denominations and shall be in such forms as may be prescribed.
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 lands in a Khoti village or the mutual rights and obligations of a Khot and his tenants, save in so far as the said provisions are not in any way inconsistent with the express provisions of this Act.
Nothing in this Act shall apply to kauli lands which were held on kauli tenure in a khoti village but to which the Bombay Kauli and Katuban Tenures (Abolition) Act, 1953 (Bom. XLIV of 1953), applies.
The State Government may, subject to the condition of previous 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.
The Khoti Settlement Act, 1880 (Bom. I of 1953), as applied to the merged territories of Janjira and the said Act as applied to the merged territories of Bhor are hereby repealed.