Resource information
This is a judgment of Supreme Court of India to check grabbing of village common land including ponds and water bodies (called in different names) by unscrupulous persons, political clout, powerful vested interests, corrupt state authorities, etc by fraudulent practices and ensure their protection and safeguard. The Court has directed all the State Governments/Union Territories for eviction of illegal/ unauthorized occupants of Gram Sabha/Gram Panchayat land or Shamlat or common land by whatever name called and restore them for the common use of villagers of the village after giving a show cause notice and a brief hearing. It also said that long duration illegal occupation and making huge expenditure in constructions shall not be justification for regularizing such illegal possession. However, in exceptional cases regularization is permitted where lease granted under some Government notification to landless labourers or members of Scheduled Castes/ Scheduled Tribes, or where there is already a school, dispensary or other public utility on the land.
