Institute of Legal and Management Studies

The Supreme Court today dismissed the pleas filed by allottees of Alwara lands in the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, which challenged the Collector's order for their forfeiture.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta and N Kotiswar Singh delivered the judgment, holding that the Collector's order of 1974 was not actuated by malafides.

To recap, the appellant-allottees were allotted the lands during the Portuguese regime. After the area of Dadra and Nagar Haveli was freed from said regime in 1954, the lands were granted to the appellants/their predecessors. In 1969, the Collector exercised power of the Administrator and forfeited the lands allotted to the appellants on account of their failure to cultivate the same. The power was exercised under the Agrarian Law applicable to Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

Initially, when the appellants challenged the Collector's orders, a Division Bench of the Bombay High Court, in 1973, quashed the impugned orders. However, it was observed that the Collector was not precluded from taking action under Article 12 of the Agrarian law after giving a fair and reasonable opportunity to the appellants. Accordingly, after issuing notices and giving opportunity to respond, the Collector, in 1974, passed an order by which Alwara lands of the appellants were forfeited.

The appellants challenged the forfeiture in separate suits, which were decreed by the trial court. The Appellate Court dismissed appeals preferred by the Union of India and Administration of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. In 2005, the Bombay High Court allowed the appeals preferred by the respondent-authorities and set aside the judgments and decrees of lower courts. The suits of the appellants were dismissed. Aggrieved, they approached the Supreme Court.

Story to be updated.

Case Title: DIVYAGNAKUMARI HARISINH PARMAR AND ORS. Versus UNION OF INDIA AND ORS., C.A. No. 1479/2006 (and connected cases)

Citation : 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 942

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