Kerala - Kochi   

High Court declares provisions of Act invalid

Kochi: A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Friday declared invalid the provisions of the Kerala Temporary Stay of Eviction Proceedings Act 2007. It was enacted to stay the eviction of encroachers from the government land in Raroth village at Ambayathode, near Thamarassery, in Kozhikode district.

The Bench comprising Chief Justice H.L. Dattu and Justice K.M. Joseph passed the verdict on a writ petition field by Babu Oommen Thomas, a shareholder of Malabar Produce and Rubber Company which surrendered the excess land under the Kerala Land Reforms Act.

In March 1997, the High Court had directed the government to evict all encroachers from 126 acres now vested in the government.

The directive was confirmed by a Division Bench in 2000.The government then promulgated in 2006 an ordinance staying the eviction of encroachers.

The ordinance was made a law in 2007.The government took the stand that the law was enacted as the authorities were unable to deal with the tense situation that had arisen out of the move to evict the encroachers. If they were evicted, it would result in bloodshed. The government also said that the encroachers could be evicted only after their claims for getting the land assigned in their favour were verified.

The court said that the State and its agencies were bound to act in terms of the High Court directive. Neither the executive nor legislative could claim the right to set at naught a judicial pronouncement.

It was not open to the State government to contend that the basis of the judgement directing to remove the encroachers had changed.

The State government admitted that there was encroachment. The effect of the Ordinance and the Act was to defeat the directive of the High Court, the Bench observed.

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