It’s time TS govt reclaimed its land : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

It’s time TS govt reclaimed its land

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

The Hans India (25-06-2017)

Some land goons grabbed the government lands in Hyderabad and with the help of fabricated general power of attorney documents showing them as private owned lands and sold and managed to register in connivance with the concerned registrar in violation of Registration Act. The Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao on knowing this not only ordered to cancel them but also withdrawn the anywhere registration policy.

This is followed by the state government promulgating an ordinance known as “Telangana Rights in Land and Pattaadar Pass Book Amendment 2017” with the objectives among others maintenance of record of rights in electronic form, combining title deed and pass book and to ensure registration officers to affect the registration of property based on revenue records. The amendments will enable the goals of ease of doing business and faster greater responsibility and accountability in the department.

The land records maintained in the combined state of AP has their own loopholes. There is no Record of Rights Act for the lands in urban areas. The land could be registered even if there is no survey number for it. Despite abolition of Jaghirdari system way back its reminiscences are still in vogue. During the regime of Nizams thousands of acres were gifted to various persons who worked under them. Taking advantage of the fact that those documents were in Urdu, some people are creating forged documents on old stamp papers projecting them as original documents prepared at the time of Nizams and grabbing those lands also. Sub-registrars are registering those fake documents for their illegal benefits. All the properties of Nizam with all details are entered in the “Blue Book” a copy of which is in the custody of Nizam Trust and another with the government.

 “Political Economy of India” a study of Land Reforms Policy in Andhra Pradesh edited by BAV Sharma a professor of Political Science of Osmania University in 1980 has several interesting things on land related issues in Telangana which are of great relevance.

The Nizam and his nobles, who were mostly Muslims, owned 40% of the total land in the state of Hyderabad. It was only after the police action that the Sarf-e-Khas and Jaghirdari system were abolished and these lands were merged in Diwani bringing under government land revenue system. Sarf-e-Khas, Nizam’s own direct estate or “Crown Lands” was the most important under the Jaghirdari system. Sarf-e-Khas land revenue and the resources were used to serve the Nizam family exclusively in addition to some amount from treasury until its merger with Indian Union in 1948. As far as Telangana is concerned Sarf-e-Khas lands cover the area surrounding the city of Hyderabad known as Atraf-i-Baldah.

There were other types of Jaghirs other than Sarf-e-Khas. Paigas were estates granted to Muslim feudals, especially the Nizam relatives, for recruiting and maintaining armed personnel to help Nizam in his wars. The Jaghirs and Samsthanams were those given as reward to officers who distinguished themselves in serving the Nizam. Makhtas, Banjars, Agraharams, Tanakha Jagir, Jaath Jaghir, Altanga Jaghir and Inams were given for various services and their owners were entitled to exploit the peasantry to collect revenue at their will. Some of these Paigas, Jaghirs, and Samsthanams had their own separate police, revenue, civil and criminal systems.

The Jaghirdari system was a vital element of the political system in Hyderabad. In the Khalsa and Diwani areas it was the domination of Deshmukhs and Deshpandes. They grabbed thousands of acres of land fraudulently and made them as their property reducing the cultivator as tenants.  During the first survey settlement, they got the lands registered in their names without the knowledge of the peasants. Under the Hyderabad Land Revenue Act of 1317 Fasli (1908) which lays down the principles of survey and settlement and of land revenue administration each field is considered holding a survey number and the land holder is called Pattaadar who has the right on the land. For maintaining up-to-date record of rights in lands the “Record-of -Rights” (RoR) system was introduced in Hyderabad in 1346 Fasli (1937) but could be enforced only in 19 out of 108 Diwani Taluks. Out of the then 6535 Jaghir villages, survey and settlement was introduced in 5938 villages and the remaining were unsettled. These are mostly in Telangana area.

Dr M Satyanarayana Rao another political scientist, in his article in the book, wrote that, in the first week of February 1949 the Military Governor announced the approval of The Nizam of Hyderabad for amalgamating of his Sarf-e-Khas lands with the Government Lands voluntarily. The Sarf-e-Khas lands were to a tune of 5682 Square Miles spread over 1374 villages mainly in and around Hyderabad. In accordance with another announcement he made the same day, the Hyderabad abolition of Jaghirs Regulation was promulgated on August 15, 1949. With this an estimated 150 Lakhs of acres of Jaghir lands were abolished. A jaghir administrator was appointed and all those who lost lands were compensated. However, Jaghirdars who lost Jaghirs claimed that the lands still belong to them since they owned them leading to litigation even till date.

According to Professor Satyanarayana Rao there was no centralized administration for land related issues until Salarjang introduced his reforms in 1875. Nizam at his will and pleasure used to award Jaghirs to whomever he liked. After Salarjang introduced Jillaband system two types of administrations came into existence. One was known as Government Administration for Diwani lands and the other was known as Different Administration of Jaghirs for different varieties. There was no survey or settlement for Sarf-e-Khas lands. They were never classified.

Yet another classification of lands was known as “Evacuee Property” the owners of which left for Pakistan at the time of partition. It is a known fact that such properties are completely vested in the state. Government of India has appointed an Evacuee Property Administrator in Bombay. The understanding was to allot these lands to those who migrated from Pakistan. Many managed to get fake certificate. Some people alleging that they obtained GPA from the original owners who went to Pakistan are grabbing the evacuee properties.

For instance, the sixth Nizam Mehboob Ali Khan established a match factory in Mahaboobabad in 40 acres of land. After police action, someone grabbed it under the pretext of evacuee property and converted in to house sites plots and sold them. Today no evidence of any match factory there. Dr Satyanarayana Rao says that, the Government College for women opposite HPS Begumpet and the Secunderabad Kasturba Degree College also belong to evacuee property.

For avoiding illegal transactions, each piece of land must be resurveyed and must be entered in the revenue records. All the details are to be made public. There must be an Act like RoR for the lands in urban areas like the one for rural areas agricultural lands. Until and unless yet another survey and settlement takes place to set right the land records and asserting the government right on its own land there may not be an end to litigation. END