Jammu & Kashmir High Court
Om Parkash vs Ut Of J&K & Ors on 30 June, 2025
Author: Rahul Bharti
Bench: Rahul Bharti
Serial No. 05
HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH
AT JAMMU
WP(C) No. 1420/2025
Om Parkash
.....Appellant(s)/Petitioner(s)
Through: Mr. G.S. Thakur, Advocate
Vs
UT of J&K & Ors.
..... Respondent(s)
Through:
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAHUL BHARTI, JUDGE
ORDER
(30.06.2025)
01. Land measuring 12 kanals 19 marlas comprising khasra
No. 440, khata No. 1151 and khewat No. 219 of village
Mari tehsil and district Reasi came to be mutated under
section 8 of the Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976 in favour of
the petitioner’s father Dewan Chand in terms of mutation
No. 2629 of 2003 which established the petitioner’s
father Dewan Chand as owner in possession of the said
agrarian land.
02. Upon the demise of the petitioner’s father, mutation of
inheritance No. 2945 of September 2023 came to be
attested in favour of the legal heirs of estate holder
Dewan Chand which included the petitioner as well on
2 WP(C) No. 1420/2025
the basis whereof the petitioner with a view to alienate by
way of a sale deed 2 kanals of land out of khasra No. 440
applied for ‘Fard Inktikhab Jamabandi’ (Revenue Extract)
which came to be issued viz his application No.
21771911202421574342 resulting in issuance of ‘Fard
Inthikhab’ bearing validity of three months w.e.f 03rd
December, 2024 to 03rd March, 2025. Copy of the said
‘Fard Inthikhab’ is accompanying the present writ
petition as annexure-II (page No. 14 and 15).
03. While the validity of the said ‘Fard Inthikhab’ was still
operative, the Tehsildar Reasi by virtue of an impugned
communication No. Teh/Rsi/OQ/1060 dated 03.01.2025
addressed to the Sub Registrar, Reasi urged him not to
register the sale deed as may be presented by the
petitioner along with the vendee on the purported ground
that there is a lesser clarity whether or not section 28-A
of the Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976 is applicable on
persons inheriting land from owners vested by way of
attestation of mutation under section 4 and 8 of the
Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976. This course of action on the
part of the Tehsildar Reasi has led the petitioner
aggrieved to come up with the present writ petition.
3 WP(C) No. 1420/2025
04. Section 28-A of the Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976 before its
amendment which came to effect w.e.f 26.10.2020
obtained as under :-
“[28-A. Prohibition on transfer of certain lands
(1) No person who is vested with ownership rights in land under this
Act, shall transfer such land or rights therein in any manner
whatsoever to any person other than the Government of Jammu
and Kashmir:
Provided that such owner shall have the right to transfer land in
the form of simple mortgage subject to the provisions of the
Alienation of Land Act, Samvat 1995 for securing loan for purposes
of improvement of the land.
(2) Any transfer of land or rights therein made in contravention of sub-
section (1) shall be null and void. The person who has contravened
the provisions of sub-section (1) shall after being given an
opportunity of being heard, be dispossessed of such land by a
Revenue Officer not below the rank of Tehsildar and the land shall
vest in the State and shall be disposed of in accordance with the
provisions of Section 15.]”
05. Post Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019,
Section 28-A of the Agrarian Reforms Act, 1976 came to
be amended by virtue of S.O. 3808(E) of 2020 dated
26.10.2020 to obtain in its present form as under :-
“[28-A Prohibition on transfer of certain lands
(1) Save as otherwise provided in this section, no person who is
vested with ownership rights in land under this Act shall transfer
such land or rights therein in any manner whatsoever to any
person other than Government or its agencies and
instrumentalities;
Provided that nothing in this sub-section shall prohibit:
(a) transfer of such land ownership whereof has been
vested in a prospective owner under section 8 after the
expiry of fifteen years from the date such land has been
4 WP(C) No. 1420/2025vested in the State under section 4 of the Act subject to the
provisions of Sections 133-H, 133-I, 133-J, 133-K and 133-L
of the Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat,
1996 (Act No. XII of Samvat 1996;
(b) grant of lease of land under the provisions of the
Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat, 1996 (Act
No. XII of Samvat 1996);
(c) entering into Contract Farming under the
provisions of Land Revenue Act, Samvat, 1996 (Act No. XII
of Samvat 1996);
(d) transfer of land in the form of simple mortgage for
securing loan for purposes of improvement of the land.
(2) Any transfer of land or rights therein made in contravention of
sub-section (1) shall be null and void. The person who has
contravened the provisions of sub-section (1) shall after being
given an opportunity of being heard, be dispossessed of such land
by a Revenue Officer not below the rank of Tehsildar and the land
shall vest in the State and shall be disposes of in the manner as
may be prescribed.]”
06. The petitioner’s grievance is that the Tehsildar Reasi has
acted in sheer ignorance of law to the prejudice of the
land owners of the district Reasi which includes the
petitioner and, therefore, a writ of mandamus is being
sought for which quashment of impugned
communication has been solicited.
07. Since the writ petition involves a legal issue without any
factual angle thereto, as such, notice be issued to the
respondent No. 4-Tehsildar Reasi only.
08. Ms. Nazia Fazal, learned assisting counsel to Mrs.
Monika Kohli, learned Senior AAG accepts notice on
5 WP(C) No. 1420/2025behalf of the respondent No. 4-Tehsildar Reasi and seeks
time to file reply to the writ petition.
09. Let the reply to the writ petition be filed within a period of
two weeks.
10. List again on 04.08.2025.
(RAHUL BHARTI)
JUDGE
JAMMU
30.06.2025
SUNIL