Jammu: Revenue department has asked Disaster Management Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (DMRRR) department to develop an online portal to ascertain the present status of migrant immovable properties of migrants across Kashmir valley so that the encroachment is removed.
The decision has been taken in a bid to protect the immovable properties and remove unauthorized occupants after observing that Jammu and Kashmir Migrant Immovable Property (Preservation, Protection, and Restraint on Distress Sales) Act, 1997 has not been implemented properly. The Act provides for preservation, protection, restraint on distress sales of the immovable property of the migrants.
Various provisions of the above Act refer to measures like preventing alienation of immovable property due to distress sale by imposing certain restrictions, custody of immovable property, eviction of unauthorised occupation implementation by the competent authority.
However, the Revenue department has stated that the implementation of the Act has not taken place in the manner as prescribed by the Act. “The instances have come to notice particularly after the order of the High Court in OWP No 477/2016 dated 6-3-2020 titled “All India Kashmiri Samaj and Others V/s Union of India and Others” regarding diarization of complaints and monitoring of immovable properties of migrants having been alienated without following due process,” it has been noted.
“By virtue of S.O. 1229 (E) dated 31-3-2020 (Adaptation of State Laws) order 2020 the requirement of written complaints for survey or measurement of migrant property, proviso 2 of sub-section (2) of section 6 has been omitted and the sub – section – “The competent authority shall prepare the details of immovable property of migrants in such format, as may be prescribed, and take appropriate action to evict unauthorised occupant of such migrant property including such action as provided in section 5,” has been inserted in section 6,” reads an order issued by Principal Secretary, Revenue, Shaleen Kabra.
Consequently, the Department of Disaster Management Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction has been directed to develop an online portal for filing applications by migrants for correction of records, demarcation, removal of encroachment, trespassing, alienation by way of fraud or distress etc.
“The application filled on the portal will be disposed of in a fixed time frame under the Public Service Guarantee Act, 2011 by the revenue authorities under intimation to applicant,” reads the order.
It further says, “The competent authority (District Magistrate) shall undertake survey, field verification of migrant properties and update all registers, within a period of 15 days and submit compliance report to the Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir.”
“Any violation of the Act, including in respect of religious properties, shall be taken cognizance by the competent authority (District Magistrate) with timely action for eviction, custody and restoration of such properties and also action under law against the violators,” the order further reads.
“The revenue officers shall dispose of cases on priority with due consideration to the circumstances and specificity while taking decisions with regard to the limitation period,” it added.