The Punjab Colonization of Government Lands Act, 1912

1. (1) This Act may be called the Colonization of Government Lands (Punjab) Act, 1912.
2. (2) It extends to [Haryana].

The Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, is hereby repealed.

In this Act, unless there is something repugnant in the subject or context,— "Collector" means the Collector of the district as described in the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887, and includes

1. (1) any officer appointed by the [State] Government to perform all or any of the functions and exercise all or any of the powers of the Collector under this Act, and
2. (2) any Colonization Officer or Assistant Colonization Officer appointed as such before the commencement of this Act, whether or not such officer was by notification appointed to perform all or any of the functions of a Deputy Commissioner under the Act hereby repealed. "Commissioner" includes any officer appointed by the [State] Government to perform all or any of the functions and exercise all or any of the powers of a Commissioner under this Act. "Colony" means any area to which this Act shall be applied by order of the [State] Government and, unless the [State] Government otherwise directs any area to which the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, has been applied. "Prescribed" means sanctioned by the [State] Government under this Act or under the Act hereby repealed. "Improvements" means such improvements as defined in section 4
3. (19) of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, as the tenant is permitted to make under the conditions applicable to his tenancy. "Tenant" means any person holding land in a colony as a tenant of [Government] and includes the predecessors and successors in interest of tenant. "Original tenant" means any male to whom a tenancy is first allotted by the Collector, and includes the male transferee of such a tenant and any male nominated by the Collector in accordance with the provisions of section 21 to succeed a female, to whom a tenancy was first allotted.

This Act shall, unless the [State] Government otherwise directs, apply to land to which the provisions of the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, have been applied and to any other land to which the [State] Government may by notification in the official Gazette apply it and which at the time of the notification was the property of the [State Government]: Provided that [unless the [State] Government by general or special order otherwise directs] nothing in sections 20, 21, 22 and 23, or in the proviso to section 14, of this Act, shall apply to any class of tenancies created hereafter which the [State]

Power to withdraw a colony from the operation of the Act The [State] Government may at any time by notification in the Official Gazette withdraw a colony or any part of a colony from the operation of all or any of the provisions of this Act.

1. (1) Except as provided in section 7 of this Act, the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, shall not be applicable to tenancies held under this Act.
2. (2) Nothing in sub-section
3. (1) of this section shall affect the application of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, to any matter or dispute arising between [tenants of the [Government]] and their subtenants to which [Government] is not a party.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Punjab Land Revenue Act, and Chapter VI of the Punjab Tenancy Act and the rules made thereunder shall, in so far as they are applicable, apply to all proceedings under this Act. But nothing in the Punjab Land Revenue Act or the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, shall be so construed as to vary or invalidate any condition entered in any statement of conditions issued by the [State]

Amendment to section 136

1. (1) of the Punjab Land Revenue Act Section 136
2. (1) of the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887, shall be amended by inserting after the words "under section 49" the words "or any Revenue Officer in a colony".

Notwithstanding anything in section 4 of the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887, the provisions of Chapter IV of that Act shall apply to all village sites in a colony.

1. (1) The [State] Government may grant land in a colony to any person on such conditions as it thinks fit.
2. (2) The [State] Government may issue a statement or statements of the conditions on which it is willing to grant land in a colony to tenants.
3. (3) Where such statements of conditions have been issued, the Collector may, subject to the control of the Financial Commissioner, allot land to any person, to be held subject to such statement of conditions issued under sub-section
4. (2) of this section, as the Collector may by written order declare to be applicable to the case.
5. (4) No person shall be deemed to be a tenant or to have any right or title in the land allotted to him until such a written order has been passed and he has taken possession of the land with the permission of the Collector.

Legal effect of statement of conditions Subject to the provisions of this Act, the grant of any tenancy in accordance with any statements of conditions which have been or may hereafter be issued by the [State] Government under the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, or under this Act shall be deemed to be transfer of a land within the meaning of the Government Grants Act, 1895, and shall be governed by the provisions of the said Act.

Any condition included in any statement of conditions which imposes an obligation of residence shall not be deemed to have been infringed by reason only of the temporary absence of a tenant who has established a permanent residence in the estate in which his holding is situated.

Where in any statement of conditions issued before the commencement of this Act reference is made to any register prescribed under the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, then the record-of-rights or the annual record shall so far as may be, be deemed to be such a register.

Any person who at any time before the commencement of this Act was a tenant from [Government], or of land to which the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, applied and for which a statement of conditions was issued under that Act, shall, not-withstanding any previous agreement or anything contained in the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, or any other enactment now in force, be deemed to have accepted and to hold the lands of which he is a tenant in accordance with such statement of conditions: Provided that unless such tenant shall, by deed executed and registered within twelve months from the date on which this Act comes into force, declare that the succession to his tenancy shall be in accordance with the statement of conditions applicable thereto, the succession to his tenancy shall be regulated by the provisions of sections 20, 21, 22 and 23 of this Act.

A purchaser from the [Government] of land who has been placed in possession of the land by order of the Collector shall be deemed to be a tenant of such land until the full amount of the purchase money with any interest due thereon has been paid and the other conditions set forth in the statement of the conditions of sale issued by the Collector have been fulfilled.

If any person who after the commencement of this Act has been put in possession of land in a colony as a tenant has given false information, intending or having reason to believe that any officer of the [Government] may thereby be deceived regarding his qualifications to become a tenant, he shall be deemed to have committed a breach of the conditions of his tenancy :

Exchange Subject to any orders that he may receive from the Commissioner, the Collector may allow any tenant to exchange the whole or any part of his tenancy for other land in the colony, and the land so taken in exchange shall, in the absence of any special conditions to the contrary recorded in writing by the Collector, be deemed to be held on the same conditions and subject to the same obligations as the surrendered land was held.

None of the rights or interests vested in a tenant from Government of land to which this Act applies shall be attached or sold in execution of a decree or order of any court or in any insolvency proceedings.

Except as provided in section 17, none of the rights or interests vested in a tenant by or under the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, or this Act shall, without the consent in writing of the Commissioner, or of such officer as he may by written order empower in this behalf, be transferred or charged by any sale, exchange, gift, will, mortgage or other private contract, other than a sub-lease for not more than one year in the case of tenant who has not acquired a right of occupancy, and seven years in the case of a tenant who has acquired a right of occupancy. Any such transfer or charge made without such consent in writing shall be void, and if (after the commencement of this Act) the transferee has obtained possession, he shall be ejected under the orders of the Collector :

Succession of tenants acquiring otherwise than by succession Subject to the proviso to section 14, when, after the commencement of this Act, any original tenant dies the succession to the tenancy shall devolve in the following order upon-

1. (a) the male lineal descendants of the tenant in the male line of descent. (The term 'lineal descendants' shall include an adopted son whose adoption has been ratified by a registered deed) ;
2. (b) the widow of the tenant until she dies, or re-marries, or loses her rights under the provisions of this Act ;
3. (c) the unmarried daughters of the tenant until they die or marry, or lose their rights under the provisions of this Act ;
4. (d) the successor or successors nominated by the tenant by registered deed from among the following persons, that is, to say, his mother, [his predeceased son's widow, his predeceased grandson's widow], his married daughter, his daughter's son, his sister, his sister's son; and the male agnate members of his family ;
5. (e) the successor or successors nominated by the Collector from among the persons enumerated in clause
6. (d) of this section.

When, after the commencement of this Act any male tenant, who is not an original tenant, dies, or any female tenant dies, marries or re-marries, the succession to the tenancy shall devolve-

1. (a) in the case of a female, to whom the tenancy has been first allotted, on the successor nominated by the Collector from the issue of such female tenant, or from the male agnates of the person, on account of whose services the tenancy was allotted to her ;
2. (b) in all other cases, on the person or persons, who would succeed if the tenancy were agricultural land acquired by the original tenant.

When a tenant has nominated a successor to his tenancy under section 20

1. (d) and subsequently acquires a right of ownership in the tenancy, the right of succession of the persons so nominated shall, unless the deed of nomination expressly provides to the contrary, be unaffected by such acquisition of ownership.

When a tenant has, under section 20

1. (d) of this Act, nominated a successor, he may at any time, whether before or after acquiring ownership, revoke such nomination, but not otherwise than by registered deed.

When the Collector is satisfied that a tenant in possession of land has committed a breach of the conditions of his tenancy, he may, after giving the tenant an opportunity to appear and state his objections-

1. (a) impose on the tenant a penalty not exceeding one hundred rupees, or
2. (b) order the resumption of the tenancy : Provided that if the breach is capable of rectification, the Collector shall not impose any penalty or order the resumption of the tenancy unless he has issued a written notice requiring the tenant to rectify the breach within a reasonable time, not being less than one month to be stated in the notice and the tenant has failed to comply with such notice.

Where an order resuming the tenancy has been passed under the last preceding section, the Collector may forthwith re-enter upon the land and resume possession of it; subject to the payment of compensation, to be fixed by the Collector, for uncut and ungathered crops and for the improvements, if any, that may have been made by the tenant :

Provisions for re-entry on and compensation for buildings on sites allotted for residential purposes In any case where a tenant has been allotted a site for residential purposes in consideration of his tenancy, and such tenancy has been resumed under the provisions of sections 24 and 25 of this Act, the Collector may re-enter on and take possession of such site : Provided that the Collector shall fix and pay to the said tenant reasonable compensation for, or permit him to remove, any buildings or improvements made by him on such site.

1. (1) Nothing in sections 24, 25 or 26 shall apply to -
   • (b) any breach of a condition regarding a arboriculture included in any statement of conditions other than a statement to tree-planting tenant, '[of].
   • (c) any tenancy scheduled under the proviso to section 4, except to such extent as may be specified in the statement of conditions applicable to such tenancy.

All sums due to the Government in respect of a tenancy granted in pursuance of the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, or under the provisions of this Act or of the rules and conditions issued thereunder, and all sums due on account of fees, confiscations, costs and penalties, shall be recoverable, as if they were arrears of land revenue.

The State Government may, at any time by notification in the Official Gazette, abrogate any of the limitations and obligations imposed upon tenants as part of the conditions of their tenure.

Notwithstanding anything entered in any statement of conditions issued under the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, a tenant who, either in pursuance of any such condition or otherwise by agreement with or under rules issued by the State Government, has acquired proprietary right in any land included in his tenancy shall in respect of such land cease to be subject to any statement of conditions issued under the above-mentioned Act : Provided always that he shall in respect of such land be bound by the conditions set out in

Right of alienation in respect of, and rule of succession to, certain proprietary rights acquired by a female A.

1. (1) Notwithstanding any custom and the provisions of any law to the contrary, when after the commencement of the Colonization of Government Lands (Punjab) (Amendment) Act, 1944, proprietary rights in any land are acquired by a female tenant, her rights of alienation of any such land shall be the same -
   • (a) if she succeeded to the tenancy directly or indirectly from a male tenant, as if the proprietary rights had been acquired by the last male tenant, and she had succeeded to such rights as his heir, and
   • (b) if the tenancy was first allotted on account of some male person, either to her, or to another female to whom she succeeded either directly or in a continuous line of female succession, as if the proprietary rights had been acquired by such male person and she had succeeded to such rights as his heir ; and in cases falling under clause
   • (a) or clause
   • (b) in the event of such female proprietor dying while in possession of the proprietary rights in question, the said rights shall devolve upon the persons who would be entitled to succeed, if such rights had been acquired by the last male tenant, or the male person on whose account the tenancy was first allotted, as the case may be.
2. (2) Nothing herein contained shall be construed to alter the law of succession applicable to any female tenant, in respect of proprietary rights in land acquired by her, if the tenancy in such land was acquired by or accrued to her in circumstances other than those specified in sub-section (1).
3. (3) For the purposes of this section the expression "any such land" shall be deemed to include any land obtained in exchange for part or all of the land in which proprietary rights have been acquired.

No mare or camel or other animal maintained in accordance with any prescribed statement of conditions and no progeny, if less than eighteen months old, of any mare or camel so maintained, shall be liable to attachment or sale in execution of any decree.

When the Collector is satisfied that any person has taken or is in possession of land in a colony to which he has no right or title, the Collector may, in addition to any other powers he may possess, forthwith re-enter upon the land and resume possession of it and take possession of all crops, trees and buildings thereon on behalf of the

Penalties If any person, without permission of a Revenue Officer of a grade to be specified by the State Government -

1. (a) clears or breaks up for cultivation, or cultivates any land which is owned by, or is in the possession of the Government and is not included in any tenancy or allotted residential enclosure or which has been set apart for the common purposes of a town or village community or section of the same or for a road, canal or watercourse ; or
2. (b) erects any building on any such land ; or
3. (c) fells or otherwise destroys standing trees on such land ; or
4. (d) otherwise encroaches on any such land ; or
5. (e) makes an excavation or constructs a water channel on any such land ; he shall, on complaint made by order of or under authority from the Collector, be punished on conviction with a fine not exceeding Rs. 200 : Explanation. -The felling of trees planted by an owner or tenant on any village road or watercourse traversing his holding is not an offence under this section.

When the Collector is satisfied that an act punishable under section 33 has been committed, he may in lieu of proceeding against the offender under that section or after conviction of the offender under that section -

1. (i) in the case of an offence under section 33 (a), confiscate the crops growing on any land cultivated in contravention of this Act or, if the crops have been cut, recover such sum as he may assess as the value thereof from the offender ;
2. (ii) in the case of an offence under section 33 (c), recover such sum as he may assess as the value of the trees or tree destroyed ;
3. (iii) in the case of an offence under section 33 (b), (d) or (e), cause the building or other encroachment to be demolished or removed or the excavation or channels to be filled up, and levy the costs of so doing from the person responsible for such act.

1. (1) If in any estate the majority of the tenants and owners of the estate shall apply for the levy of a cess for village purposes, the Collector may order the payment of such a cess from the proprietors, tenants and inhabitants of the village in such way and at such rates as he hold to be suitable.
2. (2) Any cess leviable under this section shall be recoverable by suit under section 77 (3)
   • (j) of the Punjab Tenancy

Jurisdiction of Civil Court barred as regards matter arising under the Act A Civil Court shall not have jurisdiction in any matter of which the Collector is empowered by this Act to dispose, and shall not take cognizance of the manner in which the State Government or Collector or any other Revenue

Public servants indemnified for acts done under this Act Public servants indemnified for acts done under this Act.

Legalization of orders passed previous to the Act Legalization of orders passed previous to the Act.

1. (1) Any Act hitherto done or order passed by the [State] Government or by an officer holding the post of Colonization Officer, Assistant Colonization Officer or Settlement Commissioner, or exercising the powers of an Assistant Collector: or of a Revenue Officer of higher class within any area to which the Government Tenants (Punjab) Act, 1893, has been applied or to which this Act may hereafter be applied which is not contrary to the provisions of this Act, shall be deemed to have been done or passed under this Act.
2. (2) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing subsection, no right of occupancy or right of ownership and no condition applicable thereto shall be invalidated by reason of -
   • (i) the right having been granted before the particulars regarding it have been entered in a prescribed register; or
   • (ii) the prescribed register not having been signed by the tenant ; or
   • (iii) the prescribed statement of conditions having been affixed to the prescribed register instead of being prefixed thereto : Provided that if the register has not been signed by the tenant, the statement of conditions applicable to the tenancy shall be deemed to be that which was in force for tenancies of the same description at the time when the land was allotted.