The Taluk Land Board of Kozhencherry, chaired by Additional District Magistrate Anu S. Nair, has declared 118.74 ha of land in the possession of K.J. Abraham, chairman of the Kozhencherry Charitable Education Society and Charitable Educational and Welfare Society, as excess land and directed the revenue officials concerned to take possession of the excess land, invoking the relevant provisions of the Kerala Land Reforms Act.
The order of the Taluk Land Board chairman, issued here on Tuesday, declared 118.74.65 ha in the possession of Mr. Abraham in the taluks of Kozhencherry, Alathur and Adoor as excess land.
The order also directs the tahsildar concerned to take over the excess land in the next seven days. This includes 232 acres in Aranmula, Kidangannur and Mallappuzhassery villages that has been sold to the Chennai-based KGS Group for construction of a private airport project.
The decision of the Taluk Land Board came on the basis of an order of the State Land Board {Order No.LB(B8)4257/08 dated July 3, 2012}, for initiating suo motu proceedings to take over the excess land at Aranmula and the Kerala High Court directive to take a final decision after hearing all the parties concerned.
The Taluk Land Board order also annulled the land deal between Mr. Abraham and the KGS Group as per Section 84 of the Land Reforms Act.
The mutation of the land sold by Mr. Abraham to the KGS company too automatically turned to be null and void with the order of the Taluk Land Board, official sources said.
The Taluk Land Board has maintained that Mr Abraham, in his capacity as chairman of the Kozhencherry Charitable Education Society and Charitable Educational and Welfare Society, had acquired 118.74.65 ha of excess land.
Land Board findings
The board further found that a majority of the members and office-bearers of both the societies, with independent registration numbers an chaired by Mr. Abraham, were his close relatives. A Land Board meeting held on July 12 had maintained that both the societies were formed by Mr. Abraham for bypassing the rules in the Land Reforms Act to amass such a large extent of land.
In a report (No. C8-51855/09) submitted to the Commissioner of Land Revenue on February 12, 2013, the then District Collector V.N. Jithendran had stated that the State Land Board had given permission (Order No. LB (B8) 4257/08, dated 03-07-12) to the Taluk Land Board for initiating suo motu proceedings to take over the excess land in Aranmula.
