High Court stays government bid to take back land sold by Bhoodan beneficiary

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat high court on Tuesday ordered status quo on a parcel of land purchased by senior advocate Sudhir Nanavati near Bhat village. This land was donated to the landless during the Bhoodan movement initiated by renowned Gandhian, Vinoba Bhave.
This legal development may in future could result in a stay on any proceeding with regard to numerous pieces of land, which were sold by the recipients after benefiting from the Bhoodan movement.Many such purchasers of these lands were issued show-cause notices by revenue authorities seeking explanation why their lands should not be taken back by the government because there was apparently breach of contract on part of the land sellers.
Nanavati purchased the land from the holder who had received it from the donor through Bhoodan Samiti in the past. When this deal came to the notice of the revenue authorities, they issued a show-cause notice to take the land back. He moved the HC in 2011 challenging the notice on the ground that the state government had no role to play in these transactions, and the district collectorate was not a competent authority to issue such a notice. It was also contended that the notices were issued at a premature stage.
In 2011, the HC had ordered status quo in this case.When Justice Bela Trivedi passed a judgment in December with regard to par cels of land donated during Bhoodan Movement and ordered the state government to decide future course of action to end profiteering and put such land to proper use, she vacated the stay on show-cause notices paving the way for the revenue authorities to act further in cases in which Boodan land was sold.
Acting on the appeal by advocate Nanavati, a division bench of Chief Justice R S Reddy and Justice V M Pancholi has once again ordered status quo in this case and restrained revenue authorities from taking any action. The court has kept further hearing on February 9, said Nanavati's advocate Dhara Shah.
In December, the HC ruled that the land donated with “avowed and laudable object“ in Bhoodan movement for the poor landless must not be wasted by allowing it to be sold, and such land should be put to use for public purpose when not useful for agriculture purpose for the beneficiaries.
The HC said that the state government should shed its lethargy and mismanagement and come out with a piece of legislation for proper use of Boodan land so that the purpose of Boodan Movement can be achieved.
Ruing absence of law and lack of initiative to manage this donated land, the HC ordered the chief secretary to form a state-level committee of concerned department heads as well as district-level committees within a month.
These committees were tasked to prepare a database and prepare a detailed report on status of Bhoodan lands in next three months with cooperation from Bhoodan Samitis and Gujaray Sarvoday Mandal. The state-level committee has been mandated to give recommendations to the government on whom to allot undistributed land, from whose possessions the lands should be taken back.