The Maharashtra Vacant Lands (Prohibition of Unauthorised Occupation and Summary Eviction) Act, 1975

1. (1) This Act may be called the Maharasthra Vacant Lands (Prohibition of Unauthorised Occupation and Summary Eviction) Act, 1975. (2) It extends to the whole of the State of Maharashtra. (3) This Act shall, in the first instance, be deemed to have come into force in the Bombay Metropolitan Region on the 11th day of November 1975. The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, bring this Act into force in such other urban area or areas in the State, on such date or dates as may be specified in the notification.

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— (a) “appointed date” in relation to any urban area, means the date on which this Act comes into force in that area ; (b) “Bombay Metropolitan Region” or “Metropolitan Region” as the meaning assigned to it in the Bombay Metropolitan Region Development Authority Act, 1974 ; (c) “Competent Authority” means such officer, not below the rank of a Deputy Collector or an Executive Engineer, a Municipal Ward Officer or Chief Officer as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint for the purposes of this Act ; and different officers may be appointed for different areas of the State ; (d) “corporation area” means the Metropolitan Region and an area within the limits of a municipal corporation (other than Greater Bombay) constituted under any law for the time being in force in the State ; (e) “urban area” means any corporation area or the area for the time being included within the limits of any municipal council constituted or deemed to be constituted under any law for the time being in force, and includes such area as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify ; 1[(f) “vacant land,” in relation to any urban area, means— (a) all lands in such area, whether agricultural or non-agricultural, which are vacant and are not built upon on the appointed date ; (b) all lands in such area on which any structure has been or is being constructed otherwise than in accordance with any law regulating the construction of such structure and which the Competent Authority may, from time to time, by an order in writing, specify and declare to be vacant lands by announcing by beat of drum or other suitable means on or in the vicinity of such lands, and the declaration so made shall be deemed to be notice to all those who are occupying such lands that all such lands shall be vacant lands for the purposes of this Act ; and includes, in particular, all lands specified in the Schedule to this Act. The State Government may, from time to time, by an order, published in the Official Gazette, amend that Schedule by adding thereto any land or lands specified in that order or by modifying or transferring any entry in that Schedule.]

3. (1) No person shall, on or after the appointed date, occupy any vacant land or continue in occupation of any vacant land in any urban area or erect any shelter or enclosure or other structure on such land for the purposes of residence or otherwise without the express permission in writing of the Municipal Commissioner in a corporation area, of the Chief Officer in a municipal area and elsewhere, of the Collector, or except in accordance with any law for the time being in force in such urban area. (2) No person shall on or after the appointed date abet any person in occupying any vacant land or in continuing to occupy such land in any urban area, or in erecting any shelter, enclosure or other structure on such land for the purposes of residence or otherwise in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1), or shall receive or collect from the occupier of such vacant land any amount whether by way of rent, compensation or otherwise or shall in any manner whatsoever operate in relation to the unauthorised occupants of such vacant land : 2[Provided that, the State Government or any Officer or authority specified by it in this behalf, shall have a right to receive or collect from the occupier of such vacant land such reasonable amount by way of penal charges as may be determined, by general or special order, by the State Government, till such time as the structure erected in contravention of the provisions of sub-section (1) is removed from the land. Payment of any such amount shall not create or confer on the unauthorised occupant any right of occupation of such land or structure. Such amount if not paid on demand shall be recoverable as an arrear of land revenue. The amount so collected shall, as far as possible, be utilised for purposes connected with the eviction, rehabilitation and improvement of conditions of unauthorised occupans of vacant lands.]

4. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force if the Competent Authority, either on application or suo motu, has reason to believe that any person is occupying any vacant land in an urban area in contravention of the provisions of section 3, it may by order require such person to vacate the land forth with or by certain time intimated to such person, and to remove all property therefrom, and if such person fails to comply with the order to vacate the land and to remove all property therefrom, he may be summarily evicted from such land by the Competent Authority, and any property which may be found thereon may be ordered by the Competent Authority 3[to be forfeited to such authority as the State Government may by general or special order specify and be removed from the vacant land.] For the purposes of eviction and removal of any such property, the Competent Authourity may take, or cause to be taken, such steps and use, or cause to be used, such force, and may take such assistance of the police officers as the circumstances of the case may require. Explanation.—For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared that the power to take steps under this sub-section includes the power to enter upon any land or other property whatsoever. (2) The order of eviction of any person from any vacant land 1[or forfeiture of any property thereon or removal of any property therefrom] under sub-section (1) shall be final and conclusive, and shall not be called in question in any Court. (3) A person who is found to be on any vacant land belonging to, or vesting in, another person shall, unless the contrary is proved by him to the satisfaction of the Competent Authority, be deemed to be in occupation of such vacant land in contravention of the provisions of section 3.

2[4A. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 3 and 4, where any occupier of a structure on a vacant land, in respect of which penal charges are collected from him under section 3, or any occupier is by an order made under sub-section (1) of section 4 required to vacate any vacant land and to remove all property (including any structure) therefrom, desires to renovate the structure at his risk and expense as a temporary measure, he may seek the previous permission of the Controller of Slums to do so. On receipt of any application for such permission, if the Controller of Slums is, after such inquiry as he deems fit to make, satisfied that the structure is not fit for human habitation and the proposed renovation is necessary to make it so fit temporarily, he may, subject to such conditions as he may impose, grant the required permission. (2) Where any structure is renovated in accordance with the permission granted under sub-section (1), the Competent Authority shall not evict the occupier of the structure so renovated, till such time as the Controller of Slums may specify : Provided that if, in the opinion of the Controller of Slums, the occupier has at any time committed a breach of any of the conditions subject to which the permission was granted, he may cancel the permission granted and direct the Competent Authority to take necessary action against the occupier under section 4 forthwith for his eviction and forfeiture and removal of his property.

4B. (1) Where an occupier of any structure referred to in section 4A has availed of any financial assistance for renovation of the structure from any financing institution recognised by the State Government in this behalf, the Controller of Slums may, at the request of the financing institution, collect on behalf of that institution the amount of loan advanced to the occupier by that institution in such instalments and at such intervals, and remit the amount so collected to the institution in such manner, as may be directed by the State Government. (2) If any such occupier fails to pay any amount due to the financing institution on or before the due date, the Controller of Slums may send to the Collector, a certificate under his hand indicating therein the amount which is due to the financing institution. Thereupon, the Collector or an officer authorised by him shall recover the amount due as an arrear of land revenue : Provided that no such certificate shall be sent to the Controller, unless the occupier has been served with a notice by the Controller of Slums calling upon him to pay the amount due by a specified date.

4C. For the purposes of section 4A and section 4B, “Controller of Slums” includes any officer subordinate to him, who is authorised by him in writing in that behalf.]

5. (1) Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 3 or who fails to comply with any order made by the Competent Authority under section 4 or obstructs the Competent Authority in the lawful exercise of any power conferred by or under this Act shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and with fine. (2) Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-section (2) of section 3 shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a period which may extend to three years and fine : Provided that in the absence of special and adequate reason to the contrary to be mentioned in the judgement of the Court, such imprisonment shall not be less than six months, and fine shall not be less than five hundred rupees.

6. All cases relating to the contravention of the provisions of this Act or any order or rule made thereunder shall be tried in a summary way.

7. All offences under this Act shall be non-bailable.

8. No Court shall have jurisdiction to entertain any suit, prosecution or other proceedings in respect of the eviction of any person from any vacant land under this Act or in respect of any order made or to be made or any action taken or to be taken by the Competent Authority in exercise of the powers conferred by or under this Act or to grant any stay or injunction in respect of such order or action. If any such suit or other proceedings in respect of eviction of any person from any vacant land is pending on the apppointed date in any Court, it shall abate; and it shall be lawful for the Competent Authority to evict such person from unauthorised occupation of the vacant land under the provisions of this Act and to remove and forfeit any property from such land as provided in this Act.

9. 1[(1)] The State Government may, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act, give such directions to the Competent Authority or any officers or servants (including the members of the police) acting under its authority as the circumstances of the case may require; and it shall be the duty of the Competent Authority and such officers and servants to carry out the directions given by the State Government. 2[(2) The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint a Controller of Slums for any urban area or areas, and may, by order, direct that the powers conferred on it by sub-section (1) shall also be exercised, under its supervision and control, by the Controler of Slums for the purpose of co-ordinating the activities of Competent Authorities functioning in the urban area or areas, as the case may be.] 4[The Controller of Slums shall also exercise such other powers and perform such other duties within his jurisdiction as are conferred or imposed on him by or under any other provisions of this Act].

10. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceding shall lie against the State Government or the Competent Authority or any officer or servant (including members of the Police) acting under the orders of such Authority in respect of anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or any rules or orders made thereunder.

11. (1) The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules or orders for the purpose of carrying out the purposes of this Act. Such rules or orders may provide for levying fees or any of the purposes of this Act and for refund of such fees. (2) Every rule or order made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of the State Legislature while it is in session for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two seccessive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session in which it is so laid or the session immediately following, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule, or the order or both Houses agree that the rule or the order should not be made, and notify such decision in the Official Gazette, the rule or the order shall from the date of publication of such notification have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done or omitted to be done under that rule or that order.

12. (1) The Maharashtra Vacant Lands (Prohibition of Unauthorised Occupation and Summary Eviction) Ordinance, 1975, is hereby repealed. (2) Notwithstanding such repeal anything done or any action taken by or under the Ordinance so repealed shall be deemed to have been done or taken under this Act.