Proposed Telangana record rights Bill 'could undermine' land rights in scheduled areas

By Dr Palla Trinadha Rao*

The proposed Telangana Record of Rights Bill, 2024, seeks to replace the existing Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadar Pass Books Act, 2020. However, it is in clear violation of the Telangana Scheduled Area Land Transfer Regulation 1 of 1959 (amended in 1971 and 1978) and the Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act of 1996. Tribal groups, including the Adivasi Advocates Association of Telangana, have raised serious concerns about the proposed Bill, which could undermine the land rights of tribal communities.

Violation of scheduled area land transfer regulations and tribal protections

The Telangana State Government has introduced changes in the Record of Rights and initiated the digitization of land records, which threatens the protections afforded to tribals under existing laws. Previously, the Governor promulgated the Andhra Pradesh Scheduled Areas Land Transfer Regulation of 1959 (Regulation I of 1959), amended by Regulation I of 1970, which prohibits the transfer of land to non-tribals in Scheduled Areas. After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, these regulations were adopted by the State of Telangana.

The Koneru Ranga Rao Land Committee, constituted in 2004, highlighted the illegitimacy of landholdings by non-tribals in Scheduled Areas, including government lands and other tenures. The committee found that approximately 15,000 acres of land in the Bhadrachalam agency area were held by non-tribals under an invalid Government Order (No. 41) with a valuation of ₹75 crores as of 2004.

The committee also raised concerns about Utnoor Mandal in the erstwhile Adilabad District, where around 21,062 acres of land were recorded under old pattas held by non-tribals prior to 1950. The authorities were directed to verify whether the non-tribals had obtained the Collector's permission to hold such lands; if not, the lands were to be canceled and assigned to tribals.

Additionally, the committee instructed a review of settlement orders favoring non-tribals, recommending that appeals be filed against any settlement patta issued in contravention of the Land Transfer Regulations (LTR). The Government of Andhra Pradesh issued G.O. Ms. No. 68, affirming that LTR 1 of 1959, as amended by 1 of 1970, takes precedence over Settlement Regulations, rendering any settlement patta granted to non-tribals null and void. However, the Telangana authorities have failed to take action to file appeals against fraudulent settlement pattas obtained by non-tribals in Scheduled Areas.

Non-Tribal eviction and redistribution of land

The committee recommended the eviction of non-tribals from cultivable land in uninhabited or deserted villages, with the land being reallocated to tribals. It also emphasized the need to survey the Billa Number (un surveyed) lands in Kothaguda, erstwhile Warangal District, where approximately 21,000 acres are held by both tribals and non-tribals. Revenue authorities were directed to evict non-tribals from these illegal occupations. Furthermore, the committee called for the takeover of Farari Patta lands from non-tribal occupation under LTR provisions.

Regularization of illlegal land holdings through Sada Bainama

Since 2016, Telangana has been regularizing land transfers based on 'Sada Bainama' (transfers executed on unregistered plain papers). This process has increased the regularization of illegal landholdings by non-tribals, who produce backdated documents to evade the Land Transfer Regulations.

Although Section 5(2) of the Bill, 2024, stipulates that the regularization of unregistered land transactions must comply with the Land Transfer Regulations (LTR) of 1959, the Bill also validates decisions made by revenue officials under the Telangana Rights in Land Pattadar Pass Books Act, 2000.

In 2004, the Koneru Rangarao Land Committee recommended that unregistered deeds predating the LTR should be inadmissible as evidence for establishing a non-tribal’s right to land in Scheduled Areas. Accordingly, in 2008, the government issued a memo stating that Sada Bainamas produced by non-tribals should not be considered valid.

In Vemula Bhaskara Rao v. State of Andhra Pradesh (2008), the Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled that unregistered sale papers cannot be considered valid when examining tribal rights under the LTR.

Contradictions within the Bill 2024

The Bill, 2024, exempts lands assigned, allotted, or alienated by the State from provisions concerning the record of rights and the registration of land transactions, raising significant concerns. Furthermore, the Bill validates pattadar pass books issued under the 2020 Act, introduced by the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi(BRS) Government. The Andhra Pradesh High Court has ruled that the LTR takes precedence over the Record of Rights Acts, clarifying that non-tribals are not protected under these Acts in the context of LTR inquiries.

Ignoring PESA regulations and tribal gram sabhas

According to the Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Rules of 2011, all land transfers must be reviewed by the PESA-notified Gram Sabha to ensure accurate land entries in the record of rights. The Bill, 2024, undermines the role of the Gram Sabha in this process.

The Bill's presumptive value assigned to land entries is inconsistent with the LTR 1 of 1970, which stipulates that lands occupied by non-tribals in Scheduled Areas are presumed to have been acquired through illegal transfers from tribals unless proven otherwise.

Additionally, the Bill introduces provisions from the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) of 1908 for inquiries by appellate and revision authorities, although the CPC does not apply to Scheduled Areas, where Agency Rules, 1924, for civil dispute adjudication are in force.

Empowering tahsildars and undermining LTR

The Bill empowers Tahsildars to act as Registrars for land transactions and to implement mutations of land records. This contradicts the provisions of the Land Transfer Rules 1980, which prescribes a separate procedure for registering documents involving land transfers in Scheduled Areas and imposes restrictions on Registering Officers under the Registration Act, 1908. Under the LTR, permission from the Agent to the Government or District Collector is essential for registering land transactions in Scheduled Areas.

Immunity for revenue officials

The Bill 2024 provides immunity to revenue authorities from civil and criminal liability for errors in recording rights and registering land transactions. This is in stark contrast to the Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadar Pass Books Act 2020 ,which included penal measures, such as dismissal from service and criminal proceedings against erring officials.

Despite existing government orders, the enforcement authorities have failed to implement them. Successive governments continue to introduce Record of Rights legislation that disregards tribal protection laws, facilitating the legalization of illegal landholdings by non-tribals in Scheduled Areas.

Call for Review and Amendment of the Bill

It is imperative that the Telangana State Government reviews the provisions of the Telangana Record of Rights Bill, 2024, and aligns it with the Land Transfer Regulations 1 of 1970, the PESA Act, 1996, and the Telangana PESA Rules, 2011. The government should also ensure that its decisions follow the recommendations of the Koneru Ranga Rao Land Committee and previously issued government orders to protect tribal land rights.

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