The Gazetteers Department

Prior to the enactment of the Bombay Tenancy Act of 1939, the landlord-tenant relationship was governed by the provisions contained in section 83 of the Bombay Land Revenue Code of 1879. It was found that these provisions did not ensure equality of status to the tenant with the superior holder in matters of contract or agreement. Many tenants, who held the same lands for generations, had no right of permanency but continued to be tenants-at-will, liable to be deprived of their tenancy, at the will of their landlords.

In the absence of any legislation for the protection of tenants, rack-renting was a familiar mode of exploitation of tenants by the landlords. Tenants were, therefore, left with little incentive to improve the land and obtain better yield from it.

The Bombay Tenancy Act, 1939, which came to be enforced in this district from 8th November 1946, was passed with a view to ameliorating the condition of tenants without injuring the legitimate interests of landlords. Those tenants who had held land for a period of not less than six years immediately preceding the first day of January 1938 were declared to be "protected tenants". Such tenants could not be evicted, unless they ceased to cultivate the land personally or unless the landlord wanted to cultivate the land personally. It provided for the fixing of reasonable rent. Fresh leases were required to be of ten years' duration.

The Bombay Tenancy Act, 1939, was amended in 1946. The Act was, however, replaced by the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948. The Act of 1948, while retaining the general provisions of the earlier legislation, added new features. This Act has statutorily fixed the maximum rate of rent at one-third and one-fourth of the total produce in the case of non-irrigated and irrigated lands respectively. It empowers the Government to fix rent at a rate lower than the maximum. The right of a landlord to terminate the tenancy of a protected tenant for the purpose of taking over the land for his personal cultivation is limited by the Act. He cannot terminate the tenancy, if he is already cultivating other land fifty acres or more in area. However, if he is cultivating less than fifty acres, the right is limited to such area as will be sufficient to make up the area for his personal cultivation to the extent of fifty acres. The protected tenant is also given a valuable right. He can purchase his holding from the landlord at a reasonable price, provided that thereby his own holding is not increased to more than fifty acres or the landlord's holding is not reduced to less than fifty acres. The onus of continuing protected tenancy to the heirs of a deceased protected tenant is shifted on to the landlord. Other important provisions of the Act are the ones which enable the Government to assume management of the estate of a landlord for the purpose of improving the economic and social conditions of peasants or for ensuring the full and efficient use of land for agriculture. A provision is made for the payment to the lawful holders of the net surplus in respect of estates taken over for management after deductions of the appropriate cost incurred by Government and the amount, if any. required for the liquidation of debts and liabilities. The Act prohibits transfer of agricultural lands to non-agriculturists, but the collector may permit such transfers in exceptional cases. The landlord has to transfer his agricultural lands to persons in the following priority: (i) the tenant in actual possession of the kind. (ii) the person or persons personally cultivating any land adjacent to the land to be sold, (iii) a cooperative farming society. (iv) any other agriculturist and (v) any other person who has obtained from the Collector a certificate that he intends to take to the profession.

The Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands (Amendment) Act, 1955.

Since 1948 many amendments were made to the Act. The most important of them, however, was the one made by the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands (Amendment) Act, 1955. which was passed with a view to (i) vesting occupancy rights in lands on the tiller of the soil, (ii) re-distributing the land by the imposition of ceilings on individual holdings and (iii) providing the facility to the small holders to acquire lands, as far as practicable up to the size of an economic holding.

The most important feature of the amending Act is that which deals with tenants right to purchase the land they cultivate. It lays down that, on April 1. 1957, also called the "Tillers' Day", all the tenants who cultivate personally and in respect of whom the landlord had not initiated proceedings by December 31. 1956. to resume land for personal cultivation, would be deemed to have purchased the land cultivated by them from the landlords up to the ceiling area at the price to be fixed by the Agricultural Lands Tribunal. In computing the ceiling area, the land owned by the tenant is also taken into consideration. The purchase price would be fixed at six times the rent in the case of permanent tenants between twenty and two hundred times the assessment in respect of other tenants. In the case of tenants other than permanent tenants, the value of improvement effected by the landlord is also to be added to the price of land. The price is to be ordinarily paid by the permanent tenant in one lump sum within a year of purchase. Others may pay the purchase price cither in one lump sum or in annual installments not exceeding twelve, with simple interest at the rate of 4� per cent. In the case of a new tenancy created in future, that is, after the "Tillers' Day", the tenant must purchase the land cultivated by him within one year from the commencement of the tenancy.

In case a tenant does not intend to purchase land or fails to exercise the right to purchase land within the specified period, the Collector has been empowered to terminate the tenancy and to summarily evict the tenant. Even though the land cultivated by the evicted tenant would revert to the landlord, he is entitled to retain only so much area as will be sufficient to raise the area in his possession up to the ceiling. The land in excess of the ceiling area would be disposed of to other persons with due regard to the order of priority stipulated in the Act.

The rents, which are made payable in cash only will be payable by the tenant at a rate which will be fixed by the Mamlatdar for a village or a group of villages within the maximum and minimum limits. In the case of areas which are surveyed and settled or in which assessment has been fixed, they are prescribed at five times the assessment or Rs. 20 per acre, whichever is less, and at two times the assessment, respectively. The liability of paying land revenue, local fund cess and irrigation cess in respect of the land is transferred to the tenant. But if in any year, the aggregate of the rent, land revenue and local fund cess exceeds the cash value of one-sixth of the produce for that year, the tenant is entitled to deduct, from the rent of that year, the amount so in excess.

In the Jalgaon district, there were 11,384 protected tenants, 30,495 ordinary tenants, 157 permanent tenants and 2,23,867 owner-cultivators on the 1st February 1957. The lands held by them were 99,580 acres, 1,99,022 acres. 521 acres and 14,27,181 acres respectively. It may be noted, however, that as a result of the extension of the special rights conferred on protected tenants to all tenants in general, the distinction between the protected and the ordinary tenants has thus been removed. A landlord who intends to resume land for personal cultivation can eject a protected or ordinary tenant subject to certain conditions, provided a notice was served on the tenant for resumption, by December 31, 1956. In all cases of evictions, however, the tenant, who is affected, should be left with an area which is equal to or more than half the area leased to him previously.

The Act defines an economic holding as (i) sixteen acres of jirayat land or (ii) eight acres of seasonally irrigated land or paddy or rice land or (iii) four acres of perennially irrigated land. The ceiling limit on individual holdings is stipulated at three times the economic holding. Restrictions have been laid down regarding the future transfers of agricultural land. Land purchased by tenants under the provisions of this Act can be transferred only with the permission of the Collector. Land cannot be transferred, sold or mortgaged to a person who is not an agriculturist. Further, where a landlord intends to sell any land, he has to apply to the Agricultural Lands Tribunal for determination of reasonable price, after which the land has to be offered for sale according to the order of priority stipulated in the Act.

Co-operative societies have been exempted from some of the provisions regulating the landlord-tenant relationship as also from those relating to restrictions on transfer of land.

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