The Land Tribunal pattayams (title deeds or purchase certificates), which are only issued to cultivating tenants but are now in possession of various companies, trusts, institutions and individuals, have come under the scanner with the State Land Board seeking a report from all the Land Tribunals at the earliest with respect to such title deeds.
It is estimated that Land Tribunal pattayams (LT pattayams) have been issued to more than 50,000 acres of land which are now under the illegal possession of certain trusts, institutions, companies and individuals.
The Land Board sprung into action after Chandraprabha Trust stated that it will provide 50 acres of the 105 acres that it held for the Medical college in Wayanad. It was found that the Trust had got LT Pattayam or purchase certificate for the land that is only given for cultivating tenants as per the Kerala Land Reforms Act.
As per the Land Reforms Act, purchase certificate is issued only to natural human beings and not to companies or trusts. In most cases, LT Pattayams have been given for about 100 acres, 500 acres, 1,000 acres of land respectively, which exceed the ceiling limits stipulated in the KLR Act.
It has also come to the notice that these lands are being fragmented and sold.
Most of the landholders claim that they had got the LT pattayam as per the Fixity of Tenure, highly-placed sources said.
However, the sources point that as per Section 13 of the KLR Act, Fixity of Tenure is not given to more than 30 acres of plantations and 15 acres of land in case of individuals.
They said that the landholders are just making false claims and some officials in the Revenue Department were hand in glove with the major plantations, trusts and other institutions.
The nexus between the officials and the landholders has led to the government losing a major chunk of public land, they said.
The sources also alleged that most of the title deeds have been given by the Land Tribunal overriding the Taluk Land Board without even looking into whether it was surplus land which should be vested with the government. The Land Tribunal had deliberately not looked into all the provisions prescribed in the KLR Act before the title deeds were issued, highly-placed officials said.