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| Political storm in offing over Roshni | | ‘Roshni Act can't stand the scrutiny of law’ | | Early Times Special Correspondent
Jammu | Oct 23
Jammu and Kashmir State Lands (investing of ownership to occupants) Act 2001, popularly called Roshni Act, passed by the National Conference government, which has been amended by the present government in 2004 and the rules formed thereunder in 2007, which have sparked off a good deal of controversy, with the opposition National Conference as well as some aggrieved parties coming out to the streets in its opposition, may not stand the scrutiny of the law, if legally challenged, according to a highly senior advocate having been in the profession for last 40 years dealing with such cases in India as well as in the United States, Mr. Balraj K Palli. The very provision kept in the law to bar the same being challenged in any court of law can lead to the striking of the law by the Supreme Court, since it is violative of the fundamental rights of the people, to seek judicial remedy by an aggrieved person against any act of the government, which he thinks to be discriminatory and unjust to him. Section 14 of the law, titled Bar of Jurisdiction of Civil Court, which provides (a) "no Civil Court shall have jurisdiction to settle/decide or deal with any question or to determination any matter arising under this Act or the rules made thereunder" and (b) "no order of any officer or authority passed under this Act or the rules made thereunder shall be called in any Civil Court", infringe the fundamental rights of the citizens to seek legal remedy against any action which he believes to be unjust to him. The provision of the appeal to the aggrieved person as kept in the law under Section 7 which reads "any person aggrieved of any order passed by the Committee relating to the price for vesting of free hold rights in favour of an occupant may file an appeal before the government, who shall as far as practicable decide the same within 30 days of its filing. The decision of the government shall be final and binding". This clause too is draconian as well as ultra virus of the fundamental constitutional rights of the citizens and makes the final appellant the very authority viz the government against whom an aggrieved person has to seek justice.
Besides these legal flaws in the Act, the same is believed to be against the concept of social justice and the welfare state, whose function is to empower its citizens. Ever since rules for implementation of the Act have been framed and notices have been issued to the occupants of Nazool and other government lands for last 40 to 80 years, most of whom are the authorized leaseholders, having already paid premium on the lands and also paying ground rent on the same, demanding exorbitant rates for vesting ownership rights of the lands under their occupation, a political storm of the sort has started blowing. While some marginal leaseholders having 1 to 2 marlas of lands in their occupation are depositing the amounts called of from them, to avail of the incentives for depositing money within stipulated period, those who are being gravely affected and who are now being made to deposit sums amounting to rupees one crore and more are sulking and gearing up for fighting against the alleged injustice with them, through legal, political as well as agitational means. The main opposition party in the state, National Conference who had originally adopted this Act in 2001, popularly called Roshni Act, since it was claimed that the money collected through these means would be spent on augmenting electric power position in the state and give Roshni (light) to the people, is now opposing its amended form and rules and regulations framed under it. The BJP and some other parties too have described the provisions of the law being very harsh on certain sections of the people.
The aggrieved parties rue that they being the law abiding persons, having been allotted lands on lease, after paying premium fixed on the same by the government as well as regularly paying the ground rent, are being subjected to great discrimination, treated worst than the land grabbers and encroachers who occupied government lands without any authority and raised buildings over these unauthorisedly. While in the case of the latter their possessions have been regularized and ownership rights vested on them after charging the nominal cost, called the development charges. Accordingly 13 colonies were regularized by the JDA and J&K Housing Board in the year 2005 under that scheme. It is also alleged that in many cases the lease was not revised by the government after the expiry of the period of original lease deed, even after persistent request in writing by the allottees of the lands. In certain cases the lease deed was not revised with the legal heir of the original lease holder. Thus these occupants of the lands have been declared as unauthorized occupants, for no fault of them and are being now made to pay through their nose.
Since a political storm is brewing against the law, which the government and some ruling politicians claim to be highly revolutionary, aimed at empowering the common people by vesting ownership rights on them, the controversy over the same is poised to become one of the major election issues in the coming assembly polls. As many as 20,000 families in Jammu city alone are estimated to be having stake in the matter, while their number in other towns may cross the figure of one lakh. If the aggrieved people come to the streets as is threatened by them and if the opposition political parties who have already criticized the government on this count come to their aid and make it a political issue, the coalition government and the ruling alliance parties will be put in a tight spot, it is believed. |
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