Surrender or abandonment by raiyat or tenant

A. Surrender or abandonment by raiyat or tenant -

1. (1) No surrender to the landlord or abandonment of any holding or any part therof by a raiyat or a tenant shall be valid unless such surrender or abandonment has been previously approved by the Revenue Officer.
2. (2) Any raiyat or tenant desiring to surrender or abandon his holding or any part thereof may furnish information thereof in writing to the Revenue Officer.
3. (3) On receipt of information under sub-section (2), the Revenue Officer may, after making or causing to be made such inquiry and in such manner as may be prescribed, by order, either approve or disapprove the proposed surrender or abandonment : Provided that no surrender or abandonment shall be disapproved unless the raiyat or tenant, as the case may be, has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in the matter.
4. (4) Where the surrender or abandonment of any holding or part thereof is approved by the Revenue Officer under this section, the holding or part thereof so surrendered or abandoned shall be settled by the Government -
   • (i) Where such surrender or abandonment was made by a person belonging to a Scheduled Tribe, with another person belonging to the Scheduled Tribe; or
   • (ii) in a case where no person belonging to a Scheduled Tribe is available or willing to take settlement under clause
   • (i) or in any other case, with any other person in accordance with the priorities specified in sub-section
5. (2) of section 51.
6. (5) Where any raiyat or tenant surrenders or abandons his holding or any part thereof without the previous approval of the Revenue Officer and the holding or part thereof so surrendered or abandoned is taken possession of by the landlord, then, it shall be competent for the Revenue Officer (after giving to the landlord an opportunity of being heard) to impose on the landlord a penalty of an amount not exceeding two hundred rupees per acre of the land so surrendered or abandoned for each year or any part thereof during which the possession is continued.