Allotment Under Evacuees’ Property Act Confers Only Temporary Right Of Use, Not Title Or Interest: Jammu & Kashmir High Court

The Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has ruled that allotment under the Evacuees’ Property Act is a temporary right of use and occupation of any immovable property and it neither confers any right nor title or interest over the allottee.

A single bench of Justice Rajesh Sekhri while referring to a full Bench judgment in Shamsher Singh v. Dy. Custodian 1973 General reiterated,

"Allotment is a mere license, which is revocable by the concerned authorities under certain conditions. It neither confers ownership nor interest in the land. The interest of an allottee arises only by statutory grant to displaced persons, which is not amenable to acquisition or alienation in any normal modes by way of sale, gift, mortgage or will".

The court was hearing a quashing plea under Article 226 of Constitution against order of Special Tribunal which set aside order of Custodian Evacuee Property allowing possession of suit land to the Petitioner herein.

The petitioner claimed possession on basis of alleged purchase from an allottee named Kuda Ram. However, the respondents, siblings of the petitioner, claimed that the land was shamlat in nature and they obtained it through a family settlement executed by their father.

The petitioner assailed the order of the Tribunal on the ground that the Tribunal has exceeded its jurisdiction conferred by law by going into factual aspects of the case, which was never agitated by the parties.

Justice Sekhri noted the admitted position of fact that land in question is Shamlat in nature. It observed that the Tribunal has rightly observed that there was nothing on record to indicate whether Kuda Ram, being a local allottee, was given the subject land as an evacuee land or just Shamlat land for agricultural purposes and that Custodian had assumed it to be an evacuee property without referring to any documentary evidence placed on record in this respect.

Deliberating on the term "allotment" under sec 2(a) of the J&K Evacuees Act, the bench observed that the allotment to an allottee under the Evacuees’ Property Act is a temporary right of use and occupation of any immovable property of Evacuee. It neither confers any right nor title or interest over the allottee.

In view of the said legal position the bench endorsed the order of the Tribunal and observed that the land in question had illegally passed hands from Kuda Ram, because in the capacity of being an allottee Kuda Ram was not authorized to part with the land allotted to him for monetary consideration which would entail cancellation of allotment of evacuee property.

"Learned Tribunal has rightly observed that allotment of evacuee property cannot be ordered on the basis of revenue entries or on the basis of some report submitted by the revenue officials", the bench remarked.

Accordingly the court could not find any illegality or impropriety in the impugned order and hence dismissed the petition.

Case Title: Bachan Lal. Vs J&K Special Tribunal

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (JKL) 119

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