All char lands, whether re-formation in situ or new accretion, were declared to be khas lands. 135 was promulgated to provide that in case of diluvion the rent of the holding shall be abated and the tenant's right of ownership shall be extinguished and the land on reappearance shall vest in the government, except the land in respect of which the tenant's right to repossession was finally recognised by the court or competent authority before in situ, which was declared to have been founded on universal law and justice, and enjoyed the sanction of positive law from 1825, was abrogated. ![]() The provisions relating to abatement of rent for the diluviated land and subsistence of tenant's right to such land, similar to those of section 86A of the Bengal Tenancy Act, were incorporated in section 86 of the Act of 1950. In the east bengal state acquisition and tenancy act 1950, a specific provision regarding the law of accretion, which was so long being regulated by Regulation XI of 1825, was made in section 87. This provision was again amended in 1938 to provide for automatic abatement of rent in case of diluvion and ensured subsistence of his right to get back the land if it re-formed within 20 years of diluvion, twithstanding the abatement of rent. By an amendment a new section, 86A, was inserted in the Bengal Tenancy Act providing that the tenant's right to the diluviated land would be deemed to have been surrendered or extinguished if he had obtained a reduction of rent. Similar provisions were made in section 52 of the bengal tenancy act 1885. The tenancy law, as contained in sections 17 and 18 of the Bengal Rent Act 1859, recognised the corollary principle that the tenant was liable to enhancement of rent in case of increase of area of his land by alluvion and he is entitled to a reduction of rent in the event of decrease of the area of land by diluvion. Thus the right of ownership of the land re-formed in situ can be said to have been derived from the judge-made law. The owner of the diluviated land is deemed to be in constructive possession of the same during the period of its submergence and can claim back the same when it reappears out of water and is identified as such. The underlying idea of the above principle declared by the Privy Council is that the right to property is t destroyed or affected merely because it goes under water. It is t specifically provided in the regulation but is derived from the principle of justice and equity contained in the fifth clause of section 4. The right of ownership of land re-formed in situ is considered to be incidental to one's title to a tangible property. The right to land once diluviated and subsequently re-formed in the old site and the right to new accretion are two distinct rights. ![]() The regulation of 1825 covers broadly two categories of land re-formation: in situ and new accretions. It was in the absence of such a clearly established usage that the principles contained in the regulation were to guide the courts in deciding the ownership of char lands. On the contrary, it declared the supremacy and applicability of the rules of usage wherever a clearly established usage was available. The regulation was t intended to introduce any new rule of law. In this context, the rules of usage were given statutory shape for the first time by promulgation of the Bengal Alluvion and Diluvion Regulation 1825. Such loss of landmass (diluvion) and formation of chars (alluvion) since time immemorial must have led to the growth of a body of usage and custom regulating the rights of ownership of such lands.īecause the rules of usage were 't being generally kwn', the courts of justice established in the early period of the east india company's rule found it difficult to determine the rights of litigant parties claiming ownership of char lands. Erosion of the bank on one side and formation of char on the other are the recurring acts of the river systems. Since the torrential monsoon flow is unable to discharge itself through the inflated riverbed, it inundates vast tracts of land on both sides and swallows up the landmass on one side of the bank, and gradually and imperceptibly forms accretions on the other side. The bulk of the sand and mud get deposited in their meandering courses raising the river beds and forming chars or accretions along the course of the rivers and at their confluence. These mighty rivers originating in the himalayas carry millions of tons of mud and sand every year on their journey to the bay of bengal. Alluvion and Diluvion barring some hilly areas in the southeast and the rtheast, Bangladesh is the world's largest delta formed by three great river systems ganges/ padma, brahmaputra/ jamuna and meghna.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |