The Gujarat Land Grabbing (Prohibition)(Amendment) Act, 2022

1. (1) This Act may be called the Gujarat Land Grabbing (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act, 2022.
2. (2) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 11th January, 2022.

In the Gujarat Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, 2020 (hereinafter referred to as “the principal Act”), in section 2, to clause (c), the following proviso shall be and shall be deemed always to have been inserted with effect from the commencement of the principal Act, namely:- “ Provided that ‘land’ shall not include the land in respect of which applications for grants are pending on the date of commencement of this Act under the Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006;”.

In the principal Act, in section 9, --

1. (i) to sub-section (1), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely:- “ Provided that if, in the opinion of the Special Court, any application filed before it is prima facie frivolous or vexatious, it shall reject the same without any further enquiry.”;
2. (ii) in sub-section (5), for the existing proviso, the following proviso shall be substituted, namely:- “ Provided that he shall neither be called as a witness except on his own request in writing nor shall his failure to give evidence be made the subject of any comment by any of the parties or the Special Court or give rise to any presumption against himself or any person charged together with him at the same proceedings.”;
3. (iii) to sub-section (7), the following provisos shall be added, namely:- “ Provided that the Special Court shall, by public notice specify the fact of taking cognizance of the case under this Act. Such notification shall state that any objection which may be received by the Special Court from any person within the period specified therein shall be considered by it: Provided further that the Special Court shall cause a notice of taking cognizance of the case under the Act served on any person known or believed to be interested in the land, after satisfying itself about the persons likely to be interested in the land.”.

In the principal Act, after section 12, the following section shall be inserted, namely:- “12A.

1. (1) Any person aggrieved by a final judgment and order made by the Special Court under this Act may prefer an appeal against such order to the High Court.
2. (2) A separate appeal shall lie from the judgment and the order made by the Special Court in the civil proceedings or the criminal proceedings respectively under this Act to the High Court.
3. (3) Every such appeal shall be preferred within thirty days from the date on which the impugned judgment or order was made and the period of thirty days shall be reckoned from the respective date of judgment and order passed in each of the proceedings: Provided that the High Court may, if it is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from preferring the appeal within the said period of thirty days, permit the appellant to prefer the appeal within a further period of sixty days. (4)
   • (i) In deciding appeal from the judgment and order of the Special Court in civil proceedings, the High Court shall exercise all the powers which a civil court has and follow the same procedure which a civil court follows in deciding appeal against the decree of an original court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
   • (ii) In deciding appeal from the judgment and order of the Special Court determining any criminal liability under this Act in criminal proceedings, the High Court may exercise, so far as may be applicable, all the powers conferred by the Chapter XXIX of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 as if the Special Court was a Court of Sessions trying cases within the local limits of the jurisdiction of the High Court.
4. (5) On receipt of any such appeal, the High Court shall, after giving the parties to the appeal a reasonable opportunity of being heard, make such order, as it may think fit, confirming, modifying or reversing the order appealed against or remanding the case back with such direction as it may think fit for a fresh order after taking additional evidence, if necessary.”.

-1 5.

1. (1) The Gujarat Land Grabbing (Prohibition) (Amendment) Ordinance, 2022 is hereby repealed.
2. (2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken under the principal Act as amended by the said Ordinance, shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the principal Act, as amended by this Act.