By Mohammad Amin Mir
Rule 4 of the Jammu & Kashmir Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976, plays a crucial role in determining land ownership and cultivation rights. This rule establishes that entries in the “Khasra Girdawari” (land revenue record) serve as the primary source of information regarding personal cultivation. However, any disputes regarding these entries must undergo proper inquiry by a revenue officer, ensuring all affected parties are heard before making amendments to the land ownership records.
Key Aspects of Rule 4 – Presumption of Accuracy:
Entries in the Khasra Girdawari are presumed to be accurate concerning who has been cultivating the land. This presumption is particularly important for determining eligibility under the Agrarian Reforms Act.
Dispute Resolution Mechanism:
If any party challenges the Girdawari entries, a revenue officer (not below the rank of a Tehsildar) must conduct a detailed inquiry. All stakeholders must be given the opportunity to present their case before any modifications are made to the land records.
Importance in Land Ownership Disputes: Rule 4 is essential in resolving land ownership disputes, as it provides a clear legal mechanism for verifying cultivation status based on official land records.
Application of Rule 4 – Verification of Cultivation: When an individual claims tenancy rights under the Act, the revenue officer refers to the Khasra Girdawari to verify if the claimant is listed as the cultivator of the land.
Hearing of Objections: If a Girdawari entry is contested, the objecting party must file an official objection with the revenue officer. The officer then conducts a hearing to gather evidence and determine whether the entry should be amended.
Challenges in Implementing Rule 4
Manipulation of Records:
There have been instances where Girdawari entries were manipulated to benefit certain parties. Such cases necessitate thorough investigations to ensure fairness.
Outdated Information:
Many Girdawari records are outdated, failing to reflect the current land use and cultivation patterns. This discrepancy leads to inaccuracies in ownership and tenancy records.
Ensuring Fairness in Girdawari Entries
Previously, Girdawar Quanoongoes (revenue officials) could change the tenancy column in the Girdawari without hearing the affected parties. This allowed them to replace Person A’s name with Person B’s without giving Person A an opportunity to contest the change. However, the law has since evolved to mandate that all parties must be heard, even if one party is not in possession of the land.
Current Issues with Girdawari Implementation
Girdawari records should include the name of the tenant, the type of crop grown, and the possession holder’s details. These records are updated every six months (Kharif and Rabi seasons) and compiled into a register every four years, documenting eight crop cycles. However, in practice, these records have often not been updated as per the legal mandate.
In many villages across the Union Territory, Girdawari updates have not been conducted for over a decade. Two years ago, new Jamabandis were written, digitized, and made available on the ‘Apki Zameen Aap Ki Nigrani’ portal. However, these records remain locked by the administration. Many new Girdawari entries have been written based on these Jamabandis without considering previous Girdawari records, leading to discrepancies between old and new revenue extracts.
To ensure accuracy, it is imperative to cross-check the new Girdawari entries with old records and digitized Jamabandis. This process will help rectify errors and create a more reliable and error-free land record system.
The application of rule 4 inclusive it’s sub rules of the Agrarian Reforms Rules, 1976 objects to the correctness of an entry relating to personal cultivation in khasra Girdawar in the course of attestation of mutation under Chapter IV (which elucidated the modus operandi) is a supplemental provision the object of which is to resolve dispute relating to the Girdawar entry before attesting the mutation. All that is envisaged by rule 4 is a transitional provision to be adopted by Tehsildar during the attestation of mutation and not otherwise. The concept developed and introduced under the subterfuge of this rule that Tehsildar is competent to make changes in Girdawari entry is redundant to the extent it contravenes the enabling provisions of Harvest Inspection i.e. Standing Order No. 22. The Act of 1976 is a complete statute which leaves no doubt to prevail any repugnancy. The act incorporates Section 42 which is “Inapplicability” and unambiguously provides that with the effect from the commencement of this act, the provisions of-a. The Jammu and Kashmir Tenancy Act;
b.The Jammu and Kashmir Alienation of Land Act; c. The Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act; d. The Jammu and Kashmir Big Landed Estates Abolition Act; e. The Jammu and Kashmir Consolidation of Holdings Act; and f. The Jammu and Kashmir Tenancy Act and the rules, Standing Orders and the instructions issued thereunder shall, so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act and the rules framed and instructions issued thereunder, cease to apply to the land to which this Act applies. The supplemental provisions envisaged by rule 4 cannot suspend the operation of the provisions of Standing Order no. 22 for the reasons that the the enabling provisions of the Statue.e. Standing Order no 22 does not come in the way of Section 42 of the Act of 1976. The scheme of the Act and rules of 1976 have been introduced in such a way that there is no conflict seen in any of the provisions of the Act and rules of 1976 and that in Standing Order no 22. In a better comprehensive way it is expedient to mention here that all three are in harmony to eachother. The flawed interpretation of provisions the Act and Statutes leads to greater misunderstanding and ultimately leads to such executive actions which is non est and void ab initio. We must always avoid to mingle the supplementary provisions with the permanent provisions. The essence of the law must be acknowledged to its true spirit and travelling beyond the statutory limitations is always prohibited by the law.
The application of rule 4 inclusive it’s sub rules of the Agrarian Reforms Rules, 1976 objects to the correctness of an entry relating to personal cultivation in khasra Girdawar in the course of attestation of mutation under Chapter IV (which elucidates the modus operandi) is a supplemental provision and the object of which is to resolve dispute relating to the Girdawar entry before attesting the mutation. Sub rule 2 further clears that the impugned entry mentioned in sub rule 1 has been made by or under the order of a Tehsildar or a revenue officer of a higher class, the Tehsildar disposing of a mutation under Chapter IV shall act on the basis of such entry, it being open to the party aggrieved by it to object to the entry in an appeal against the final order passed on such mutation. Mutations under Chapter IV of the rules of 1977 are the mutations exclusively being envisaged therein and which in case of disputed cases require correct affirmation of retrospective cultivation from the date of Kharief 1971. All that is envisaged by rule 4 is a transitional provision to be adopted by Tehsildar or by a revenue officer of the higher class (read order (LB) 133 of 1988 dated 26.05.1989 during the attestation of all such mutations and not otherwise. The concept developed and introduced under the subterfuge of this rule that Tehsildar is competent to make changes in Girdawari entry in each and every case is redundant to the extent it contravenes the enabling provisions of Harvest Inspection i.e. Standing Order No. 22. The Act of 1976 is a complete statute which leaves no doubt to prevail any repugnancy. The act incorporates Section 42 which is “Inapplicability” and unambiguously provides that with the effect from the commencement of this act, the provisions of-a. The Jammu and Kashmir Tenancy Act;
b.The Jammu and Kashmir Alienation of Land Act; c. The Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act; d. The Jammu and Kashmir Big Landed Estates Abolition Act; e. The Jammu and Kashmir Consolidation of Holdings Act; and f. The Jammu and Kashmir Tenancy Act and the rules, Standing Orders and the instructions issued thereunder shall, so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act and the rules framed and instructions issued thereunder, cease to apply to the land to which this Act applies. The supplemental provisions envisaged by rule 4 cannot suspend the operation of the provisions of Standing Order no. 22 for the reasons that the the enabling provisions of the Statue.e. Standing Order no 22 does not come in the way of Section 42 of the Act of 1976. The scheme of the Act and rules of 1976 have been introduced in such a way that there is no conflict seen in any of the provisions of the Act and rules of 1976 and that in Standing Order no 22. In a better comprehensive way it is expedient to mention here that all three are in harmony to eachother. The flawed interpretation of provisions the Act and Statutes leads to greater misunderstanding and ultimately leads to such executive actions which is non est and void ab initio. We must always avoid to mingle the supplementary provisions with the permanent provisions. The essence of the law must be acknowledged to its true spirit and travelling beyond the statutory limitations is always prohibited by the law.
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