Proposed Nazul Law: A bill in right earnest caught in a political maze?
The controversy arose even though the bill clearly stipulates that the poor and vulnerable residents settled on Nazul land will not be evicted, sources said.
The Nazul properties bill was brought by the Yogi Adityanath government with the pious intent of making land available for public purposes and dismantling the land grabbers’ network by targeting the “big fish” who attempt to acquire Nazul land as freehold at minimal costs, but ended up getting caught in a political maze.
The controversy arose even though the bill clearly stipulates that the poor and vulnerable residents settled on Nazul land will not be evicted, people aware of the matter said.
Another aim of the bill was to do away with the need for acquiring land for public projects at huge expenditure. Still, there were voices against it on both sides of the political fence.
Read more: Nazul land bill against public and party’s interest: U.P. BJP chief
Announcing that Nazul land will no longer be made freehold in the name of any private individual or private entity, chief minister Yogi Adityanath made it clear as far back as March that his government intended to break the nexus of mafias, builders, politicians and bureaucrats who were out to grab government land. The message was clear that land will be used in the public interest for development of facilities in cities.
Since the state legislature was not in session, the state government brought the Uttar Pradesh Nazul Properties (Management and Utilisation for Public Purpose) Ordinance, 2024 that was promulgated by the governor on March 7, 2024.
During the Monsoon session of the Uttar Pradesh legislature, the state government tabled the Uttar Pradesh Nazul Properties (Management and Utilization for Public Purposes) Bill, 2024.
The government made it clear that it decided to bring the bill on the basis of the report of the NN Vohra Commitee appointed by the Central government in 1993. The Vohra committee raised concerns over the working of the organised land-grabber gangs.
Read more: Hearing on homebuyers’ plea: Court pulls up LDA over ‘illegal’ building on Nazul land
Turning Nazul into freehold a multi-crore business
The illegal occupation of Nazul land or acquiring freehold rights at a fraction of the price through forged documents is not a new phenomenon. The state has approximately 72,000 to 75,000 acres of Nazul land. The practice of obtaining these government lands, valued at around ₹2 lakh crore, for just 10% of the circle rate has been a long standing one. These lands are predominantly located in Prayagraj, Kanpur, Ayodhya, Sultanpur, Gonda, and Barabanki.
In Prayagraj, nearly the entire Civil Lines area is on Nazul land, where each bungalow is valued between ₹100 and ₹250 crore.
At least 4,000 acres of land have been converted to freehold, and this has started posing a threat to government properties.
At present, there are 312 cases in the high court and Supreme Court concerning the ownership of Nazul land, while around 2,500 cases still pending in lower courts.
Nazul land freed from land mafias’ clutches
The Nazul land where the Forensic Institute is located in Lucknow was previously under the control of a land mafia named Khurshid Agha. In 1955, the administration leased a 57-acre portion of this land to a tractor company for 10 years. After the lease expired, the land was registered in the name of the Gram Sabha of the Piparsand area in the Sarojininagar block.
However, in 2014, the plot was occupied by land mafia Khurshid Agha. He allegedly forged documents to register the land in the name of the Shia Central Waqf Board’s Balakganj cemetery and mosque. The land was transferred to the Waqf, with Agha becoming its “lifetime mutawalli” (lifetime caretaker).
Read more: Transfer of nazul land cancelled
Later, a series of transactions occurred. In 2014, Agha allegedly sold the land to Modern Cooperative Housing Society, a real estate company. The committee then transferred it to Antriksh Landmark Private Limited in Noida, which intended to develop a housing society on the site.
The issue came to the attention of the chief minister, prompting an investigation. It was revealed that Agha and his alleged associate, Ashok Pathak, faced numerous land-grabbing cases across Lucknow. Both were imprisoned in March 2020 for illegally occupying the land. Subsequently, the land was cleared, and today it houses the Forensic Institute.
In the Lukerganj area of Prayagraj, land worth crores was in the possession of mafia Atiq Ahmed. Adityanath, after completing the necessary legal proceedings, not only got the land reclaimed from the mafia, but also constructed 76 houses for the poor.
Recently, a mafia and his gang attempted to illegally occupy approximately seven acres of Nazul land valued at around ₹1,000 crore in Kanpur’s Civil Lines area. The administration acted swiftly, removing the encroachment and arrested the accused.
Anti-land mafia task force
After Yogi Adityanath became chief minister in 2017, a four-tier anti-land mafia task force was established in the state. The revenue and police departments have undertaken significant actions against the land mafia.
According to revenue department data, till August approximately 62,423.89 hectares (154,249 acres) of land has been reclaimed. Additionally, the revenue department identified 2,464 illegal occupants, arrested 187 land mafia members, and sent them to jail. Furthermore, 22,992 revenue cases, 857 civil cases, and 4,407 FIRs have been filed related to the occupation of government land.
According to the revenue department, approximately 1,54,249 acres (624 square km) of land have been reclaimed by the police and administration. This area is roughly equivalent to the size of Lucknow city, which is approximately 30 km long and 20.8 km wide.