Srinagar: In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear an urgent application seeking a stay on the “anti-encroachment” drive ordered by the Jammu and Kashmir administration. The circular issued by the J&K administration aimed at retrieving state land, which is in the possession of people for decades. Today, a Bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud agreed to hear the matter after being informed that the issue was urgent and that Justice Sanjiv Khanna had recused from the case.
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In a circular issued on January 9, Commissioner Secretary of the Revenue Department Vijay Kumar Bidhuri directed all deputy commissioners to ensure 100 per cent removal of encroachments from the state, including Roshni and Kahcharai, by the end of January. The residents were told to either demolish the structures on their own or bear the expenses for the demolition. In 2001, the Jammu & Kashmir government enacted a law called the Jammu and Kashmir State Land (Vesting of Ownership to Occupants) Act, 2001 (popularly known as the Roshni Act) for granting ownership of state land to unauthorised occupants in order to raise funds for power projects in the erstwhile State.
However, in October 2020, a Division Bench of Justices Gita Mittal and Rajesh Bindal of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh declared the Act unconstitutional. All acts done under it or amendments thereunder were also declared unconstitutional and void. The Bench had also ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the Roshni land scam case, stated to be the biggest ever in the history of Jammu & Kashmir.
