The Centre on Thursday told the Supreme Court that no coercive action would be taken against alleged illegal beneficiaries of the Jammu and Kashmir State Land (Vesting of Ownership to the Occupants) Act, 2001, or the 'Roshni Act' until the pending appeals have been disposed of by the high court.
The Union Territory has also distinguished between encroachers and lawful landowners," Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said representing the Centre. "So far as illegal encroachers are concerned Govt will oppose but for petitioners, we will do nothing without notice," he added.
The Supreme Court refused to examine the pleas filed by aggrieved landowners since the matter was still pending in the Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) High Court. "How can parallel proceedings continue," Justice Surya Kant said. The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has challenged the high court's October 9 judgment which had ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in the alleged scam.
"Subsequent to the filing of this SLP, the review by Union Territory and other beneficiaries is listed on December 21 at the J&K High Court. Until and unless review petitions are decided we can't do much. Let the review be decided by the High Court on December 21. The pendency of this case will not come in way of any of these petitioners approaching the J&K High Court in a review petition," the three-judge bench led by Justice NV Ramana said.
The Centre's submission is important since many eviction notices have been sent out to alleged land grabbers in the aftermath of the high court verdict. The CBI is also probing a list released by the Jammu & Kashmir administration indicting political leaders, bureaucrats—alleged beneficiaries of the now-scrapped Roshni Act—who were allegedly granted ownership rights to unauthorised government land against payment of a premium.
State officials acted in connivance with criminals to grab large tracts of land
On October 9, the division bench of the high court led by then Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Rajesh Bindal concluded that the Roshni Act "as amended from time to time is completely unconstitutional, contrary to law and unsustainable."
The rules of the Act were illegal and invalid since they were published without legislative approval and were not in consonance with the Act. The rules enabled change of use of even agricultural and forest lands to commercial usage all of which is contrary to the statutory provisions, completely impermissible and illegal, the judgment read.
In conclusion, the high court bench said, "The acts and omissions of officials and the encroachers/occupants tantamount to serious criminal offences, necessitating inquiry, investigation and criminal prosecutions."
"The large tracts of State lands vested under the Roshni Act, 2001 and those under encroachment must be retrieved in accordance with the law," the high court said. "The erstwhile Vigilance Organization has merely undertaken a cosmetic exercise which to points towards shielding persons in authority as well as those responsible for the illegalities," it added.
"Neither the Anti-Corruption Bureau nor the official respondents have the capacity, ability or the will to take appropriate legal action for securing the interests of the State or taking effective actions against those who have usurped the public land with impunity," the high court said justifying the need for a CBI probe.
"The official machinery has actively connived with encroachers of State lands for obvious reasons and considerations, the high court said in a scathing indictment of state officials. "…Persons in position, power and those with financial resources including bureaucrats, Government officials, minister, legislators, police personnel, business persons etc., have influenced the completely illegal vesting of State lands," it said.
Clearly, the conduct of those heading the Jammu Development Authority, the Revenue department and all those responsible for the protection of the State lands as well as the working of the Roshni Act for all these years deserves to be inquired/ investigated into. Responsibility has to be fixed and the wrongdoers punished," it added.
What is the Roshni Act, 2001?
The 2001 Roshni Act was passed by the then Farooq Abdullah led-National Conference Party (NCP) government which gave ownership rights to people who possessed state land as of 1990 against the payment of a pre-determined premium. The Act was called Roshni (light) since the proceeds of this premium would be invested to generate resources for hydroelectric power projects.
In 2005, the People's Democratic Party (PDP)-Congress coalition spearheaded by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed amended the Act and relaxed the cut-off year from 1990 to 2004. Two years later, the Ghulam Nabi Azad government determined the premium at 25% of the market rate and further relaxed the cut-off date to 2007.
The state also gave free ownership rights on agricultural land to farmers that were occupying it against a Rs 100 per Kanal of land as a documentation fee. In its judgment, the high court noted that almost because of the "illegal working of the Government functionaries, out of the actual transfer of around 3,48,200 kanals of land under the Roshni Act, the major portion of over 3,40,100 kanals has been transferred free of cost as agricultural land.