The Madras High Court Bench here has directed the Madurai Collector to preserve three waterbodies — Murugakone Kanmoi alias Muruganeri, Puthukanmoi and Nayakkankulam kanmoi — on the foothills of Alagar hills near here though a settlement tahsildar had granted patta (land ownership document) with respect to them to private individuals way back in 1970.
Allowing a public interest litigation (PIL) petition, a Division Bench comprising Justice V. Ramasubramanian and Justice V.M. Velumani held that the ‘patta’ would stand cancelled automatically in view of an amendment made in 1975 to Section 3 (b) of the Tamil Nadu Inam Estates Leaseholds and Minor Inams (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act 1963.
Prior to the amendment, the Section stated that every minor Inam including communal land, poromboke, wastelands, pasture lands, forests, mines and minerals, quarries, rivers and streams, fisheries and ferries shall stand transferred to the Government.
The amendment introduced the words ‘tanks and ooranis (including private tanks and ooranis) and irrigation works’ in to the Section.
Further, the amendment introduced Section 10-A which stated that no ‘ryotwari patta’ could be granted in respect of any private tank or oorani.
It also made it clear that any patta granted in respect of private tanks or ooranis, before the amendment, would cease to be in operation from the date of the notification of the amendment to the Act.
Again through another amendment to the legislation in 1976, it was declared that the provisions of the Amendment Act, 1975 shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force or any custom, usage or contract or decree or order of a court or other authority.
Allowing a public interest litigation (PIL) petition, a Division Bench comprising Justice V. Ramasubramanian and Justice V.M. Velumani held that the ‘patta’ would stand cancelled automatically in view of an amendment made in 1975 to Section 3 (b) of the Tamil Nadu Inam Estates Leaseholds and Minor Inams (Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari) Act 1963.
Prior to the amendment, the Section stated that every minor Inam including communal land, poromboke, wastelands, pasture lands, forests, mines and minerals, quarries, rivers and streams, fisheries and ferries shall stand transferred to the Government.
The amendment introduced the words ‘tanks and ooranis (including private tanks and ooranis) and irrigation works’ in to the Section.
Further, the amendment introduced Section 10-A which stated that no ‘ryotwari patta’ could be granted in respect of any private tank or oorani.
It also made it clear that any patta granted in respect of private tanks or ooranis, before the amendment, would cease to be in operation from the date of the notification of the amendment to the Act.
Again through another amendment to the legislation in 1976, it was declared that the provisions of the Amendment Act, 1975 shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force or any custom, usage or contract or decree or order of a court or other authority.
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