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Issues Involved:
1. Legislative competence of the State of Kerala to enact the Kannan Devan Hills (Resumption of Lands) Act, 1971. 2. Whether the impugned Act is protected from challenge under Article 31A of the Constitution. Issue-wise Detailed Analysis: 1. Legislative Competence of the State of Kerala: The primary issue was whether the Kannan Devan Hills (Resumption of Lands) Act, 1971, was within the legislative competence of the State of Kerala. The court examined the relevant provisions of the Act and concluded that in pith and substance, it dealt with entries 18 of List II and 42 of List III of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. Entry 18 of List II pertains to "Land, that is to say, rights in or over land, land tenures including the relation of landlord and tenant, and the collection of rents; transfer and alienation of agricultural land; land improvement and agricultural loans; colonization." Entry 42 of List III pertains to "Acquisition and requisitioning of property." The court rejected the petitioner's argument that Sections 4 and 5 of the impugned Act fell under Entry 52 of List I, which pertains to the regulation of industries, including tea plantations. The court held that the State has legislative competence to legislate on land reforms under Entry 18 of List II and Entry 42 of List III, even if such legislation incidentally affects an industry controlled under Entry 52 of List I. The court further clarified that the object of Sections 4 and 5 was to enable the State to acquire lands not falling within the categories specified in Section 4(1) and that these provisions were incidental to the exercise of the power of acquisition. The court also noted that the Tea Act, 1953, which provides for the control of the tea industry by the Union, did not prohibit voluntary sale or compulsory acquisition of land. 2. Protection under Article 31A: The second issue was whether the impugned Act was protected from challenge under Article 31A of the Constitution. Article 31A protects laws providing for the acquisition of estates and related agrarian reforms from being challenged on the ground that they contravene the fundamental rights conferred by Articles 14, 19, and 31. The court identified three sub-issues: - Whether the lands acquired fell within the expression "janmam right" in Article 31A(2)(a)(i). - If not, whether they fell within the expression "estate" as defined in Article 31A(2). - If not, whether any of the lands fell within the lands described in Article 31A(2)(a)(iii). The court examined the historical context and legal documents related to the Kannan Devan Hills Concession and concluded that the lands in question fell within the expression "janmam right." The court noted that the Poonjar Raja was a janmi when the first concession was granted and that the Royal Proclamation of 1899 did not change the nature of the janmam rights but merely transferred them to the Sircar (State). The court also addressed the broader definition of "estate" under Article 31A(2) and concluded that the lands could be considered as "estate" because they were held under a tenure recognized by the local law as equivalent to an estate. The court further examined whether the impugned Act was a law for effecting agrarian reforms. It noted that Section 9 of the Act envisaged three purposes: reservation of lands for the promotion of agriculture, reservation of lands for the welfare of the agricultural population, and assignment of remaining lands to agriculturists and agricultural laborers. The court held that these purposes fell within the concept of agrarian reforms, as they aimed at equitable land distribution and the betterment of rural conditions. Conclusion: The court concluded that the State Legislature was competent to enact the impugned Act and that it was protected from challenge under Article 31A of the Constitution. The petition was dismissed, and there was no order as to costs.
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