Prevention of encroachment on common land prevention of encroachments on or cultivation of common land, or land

The Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act, 1996

Tax1996193 sections

Read full ActSections

Statutory text

(1) When land which has been reserved for the common purposes of the co-sharers therein has been encroached on by any co-sharer, a Revenue officer not below the rank of an Assistant Collector of the first class or the officer in-charge of the Settlement or an Assistant Collector of the first class subordinate to him may, on the application of any other co-sharer, eject the encroaching co-sharer from the land, and, by order duly proclaimed, forbid repetition of the encroachment. 1[(2) Prevention of encroachments on or cultivation of common land, or land reserved for public purposes or of which cultivation has been prohibited or is objectionable, or, by person, not entitled to, bring it under cultivation.––
- (a) Subject to any law, agreement, custom, usage or any decree or order of any Court or other authority, for the time being in force, every person shall exercise the right of user in respect of any road, street, lane, path, Water Channel, Water Course and Water Source and other common land defined as such in any law or declared as such by the Government or the Board ;
- (b) The right of user permitted by clause (a) shall not be deemed to include or otherwise confer, create or assign any right of encroachment, whether by means of construction, including fencing, walling or putting any barrier or by breaking up of land, diversion or otherwise. (2-A) Penalty for denial of or obstruction in the exercise of right or for encroachment.—(a) Where any person is denied, or obstructed in, the lawful exercise of his right of user as provided in sub-section (1), or where any person has taken possession of or brought under cultivation or otherwise encroached upon any common land as described above, or when any person, without due authority, has taken possession of land belonging to the Government, a Revenue Officer may, on his own motion or on the application of any person interested and after such enquiry as may be deemed necessary,––
  - (i) direct the free exercise of the right of user and the removal of the obstruction, where the exercise of such right is found to have been denied or obstructed ;
  - (ii) eject the person who has taken possession of or brought under cultivation or otherwise encroached upon such common land and take possession of such land without paying any compensation for crops or improvements, and may also, by order duly proclaimed, forbid repetition of the encroachment ;
  - (iii) inflict a fine not less than twenty five thousand rupees and as prescribed by Board from time to time, on such person or persons as are found to have denied or obstructed the exercise of the right of user in respect of or to have taken possession of or brought under cultivation or otherwise encroached upon such common land.
- (b) Orders of removal of obstruction or ejectment under sub-section (3) shall be enforced in the manner provided in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908).
- (c) Where the Government land has been encroached upon, the person committing the offence, on conviction by a Judicial Magistrate of first class shall, for each of such offence, be punishable with imprisonment of one year or a fine of not less than twenty-five thousand rupees or both.]
(3) When land has been brought under cultivation by a person entitled under the rules or orders in force to bring it under cultivation, but a Revenue officer not below the rank of Tehsildar in any enquiry made under section 24 of this Act finds that, for reasons to be recorded by him, the cultivation of such land should be prohibited, he may eject the person cultivating it and may, by order duly proclaimed, forbid its further cultivation. 2[(4) No compensation shall be claimed by any person for any damage which he may sustain in consequence of the dismantling of any structure or removal of any material from the site under this section.] 3[x x x x] 4[(6) In enforcing these orders a Revenue Officer shall have all the powers in regard to contempts, resistance and the like which a Civil Court may exercise in the execution of a decree.
(7) Any fine, if not paid in cash, shall be recovered as an arrear of land revenue.]

Study data processing for this section.

PDF: pending for this language.