NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court set aside its April 2022 decision that directed the return of village common lands to gram panchayats in Haryana, restoring proprietors’ rights, according to details received by The Chenab Times.
A Bench led by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, along with Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and K.V. Viswanathan, allowed a review plea, overturning the earlier ruling that had upheld the 1992 amendment to the Punjab Village Common Lands (Regulation) Act, 1961, PTI reported. The 2022 verdict had mandated that land reserved for common purposes be managed by gram panchayats for village community needs, including leasing and use by non-proprietors, Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes.
The court upheld a 2003 Punjab and Haryana High Court full Bench ruling, stating that land not earmarked for common purposes during consolidation vests with proprietors, not the panchayat or state. “We find no error in the judgment of the full Bench… lands which have not been earmarked for any specific purpose do not vest in the gram panchayat or the State,” the CJI said, dismissing Haryana’s appeal.
The 2022 decision had stemmed from appeals challenging the High Court’s verdict on sub-section 6 of Section 2(g) of the 1961 Act, asserting that management and control of land taken from proprietors’ ceiling limits vested irreversibly with panchayats for present and future community needs. The latest 51-page judgment reversed these findings, marking a significant shift in land ownership rights.
The Chenab Times News Desk