‘Pending files, negative police reports': Surat lawyers flag issues in property deals under Disturbed Areas Act, seek timely clearance
In their memorandum submitted on Friday, the lawyers told the top officials that over a thousand files related to the Disturbed Areas Act are pending with the police department, awaiting clearance.
The lawyers informed the top officials about negative and delayed responses from the police department in their opinion report, which is mandatory to clear property sale deed files with the revenue department. Due to this, a number of property dealings in the walled city areas get cancelled, causing significant problems to both the sellers and the buyers, the lawyers said while making the representations.
The 1991 Gujarat Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Premises in Disturbed Areas Act empowers the administration to declare parts of the territorial jurisdiction as 'disturbed' in the context of communal clashes and prohibits the direct sale of property between people of different faiths unless it is cleared by the collector's office, who has to certify that the transaction involves free consent. As part of the process, the administration interacts with neighbours to make sure that there is no coercion or threat involved in the sale.
The lawyers said that while taking the consent of two neighbours used to be enough earlier, police are now demanding the nod of 10 of them. If there is any objection, the deal gets cancelled, the memorandum stated.
The lawyers requested the police commissioner to organise a daylong drive in every police station to clear the pending files.
Advocate Farhan Shaikh told The Indian Express, 'We have got a positive response from the police commissioner. He has told us that he will talk to the district collector and see what can be done so that the public does not face problems. He also assured us that if all necessary procedures are followed, there should be no delay.'
On how the Act works, he said, 'If a person wants to sell a property situated in locations where the Disturbed Areas Act is in force, they have to send a copy of the file to the district collector's revenue department. A copy of the file also goes to the Special Branch of Surat police department; from there, it makes its way to the Deputy Commissioner of Police's office, and then to the Assistant Commissioner of police, the Police Inspector and finally to the Police Sub-Inspector associated with the local police chowki.'
Shaikh said, 'We don't have a major issue with the district revenue department as they have opened a special section, which clears such files. (But) The seller and buyer have to bring 10 neighbours to the police station and get their statements recorded to confirm they do not object to the sale deed. The procedure is done only after the Mamlatdar's visit, and he submits his report to the Ashant Dhara (Disturbed Areas) department. It takes around four to five months to get such files cleared due to the delay in the police work.'
Advocate Rushikesh Godiwala said, 'The police stations have a bunch of files lying around with no clearance. The personnel are busy maintaining law and order and police security arrangements during festivals and VIP visits. We request that the pending files lying in the police station be cleared at the earliest. The people who sell property have an urgent need for money for health reasons, the education of their children, etc. Due to the delay and negative opinion from the police, the files get stuck. We hope that in the coming days, some positive response may come up and benefit lakhs of citizens.'
Surat police commissioner Gahlaut could not be contacted for comment despite multiple attempts.
Besides Farhan and Godiwala, the other lawyers who made the representations included Dewang Ghaswala, Keyur Modi, Samit Gadiwala, and Juned Shaikh.
Police stations falling under the Disturbed Areas Act in Surat include Chowk, Rander, Lalgate, Salbatpura, Mahidharpura, Athwalines, Limbayat and Khatodara.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scroll.in
15 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
EC seeks Tejashwi Yadav's voter ID card after he claims name missing from draft Bihar electoral roll
A day after Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav claimed that his name was missing from the draft Bihar electoral roll, election authorities on Sunday wrote to him asking for details of a voter ID number that he cited during his press conference, The Indian Express reported. In a letter to Yadav, the Electoral Registration Officer of the Digha constituency said that the voter ID number that he showed during his press conference on Saturday did not seem to be from an officially issued Electors Photo Identity Card, or EPIC. The officer said that the name of the leader of Opposition in the Bihar Assembly was on the electoral rolls, but under a different number. The electoral registration officer asked Yadav to furnish the original voter ID card that he presented during his press conference on Saturday, so that the matter could be investigated. After the Rashtriya Janata Dal leader first made the allegation, the Election Commission had on Saturday said that his claim was baseless and showed the extract of the draft roll where his name was present. The Digha Electoral Registration Officer said that his name was mentioned at serial number 416 of polling station number 204 (Library Building of Bihar Animal Science University), with the voter ID number RAB0456228, The Hindu reported. Yadav, however, claimed that he voted in the 2024 Lok Sabha election with the voter ID number RAB2916120, which he alleged is missing from the draft electoral roll. The Rashtriya Janata Dal leader made the allegation a day after the Election Commission released the state's draft electoral rolls on its website on August 1. The Election Commission had launched the 'special intensive revision' of the Bihar electoral roll on June 24. As part of the exercise, persons whose names were not on the 2003 voter list had to submit proof of eligibility to vote. This meant that 2.9 crore out of the state's 7.8 crore voters – or about 37% of the electors – had to submit documentary evidence. On July 28, the Election Commission said that 91.6% electors in Bihar had submitted their enumeration forms for the special intensive revision of the state's electoral rolls by the end of the first phase of the exercise. This would mean that the remaining 65 lakh names registered in the July 2025 list would not have made it to the draft rolls. With the publication of the draft rolls, now the electors have a month to raise claims and objections, during which eligible voters can be added and ineligible names excluded.
India.com
an hour ago
- India.com
How Young Is Too Young? India Debates Legal Age For Sexual Consent
New Delhi: Senior Advocate Indira Jaising stood before the Supreme Court of India in the last week on July and made a request that reignited an old and uncomfortable question: should consensual sex between teenagers still be considered a crime? At the center of this storm is one number: 18. That is the age set by Indian law for legally consenting to sex. Jaising argued this threshold may be punishing teenagers instead of protecting them. In her written submission, she urged the court to reconsider how the law treats consensual relationships between adolescents aged 16 to 18. Such relationships, she said, do not fit the definitions of exploitation or abuse. The government disagreed. It fears that lowering the bar could leave minors, those legally not adult, below 18, vulnerable to coercion, manipulation or worse. It argued making room for exceptions could lead to loopholes that might be exploited by traffickers or abusers. But the law, especially the 2012 Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, draws no lines between love and violation when it comes to minors. It sees all sexual activity under the age of 18 as criminal, even when both parties consent. This hard line has come under scrutiny from activists, judges and rights groups who believe the law is outdated or at least too rigid. In some cases, they say, parents have used the law to intervene in relationships they disapprove of, especially when caste, religion or class are involved. Many experts say the law has become a tool of control more than protection. The Global Picture and India's Long Trail Consent laws around the world are not the same. In countries like the United Kingdom and Canada, the age is 16. In the United States, it varies state to state. But in India, it is fixed, one rule for all. Back in 1860, when India first codified its criminal laws, the age was 10. In 1940, it was raised to 16. Then came POCSO, which made 18 the new standard. That was over a decade ago. Since then, the conversation has shifted, slowly, painfully but noticeably. The Courts Speak, Then Pause In 2022, the Karnataka High Court stepped in. It suggested that the Law Commission revisit the consent age under POCSO. The court pointed to several cases where teenage couples, a girl just over 16 and a boy barely out of adolescence, had been pulled into criminal trials under the law, even when there was no allegation of force. The Law Commission reviewed the matter but did not recommend lowering the age. Instead, it proposed something else: allowing courts to use 'judicial discretion' in cases involving teenagers. This means judges could consider the nature of the relationship, the age gap and whether coercion was involved before passing judgment. Even without formal legislation, some courts across India have started doing that. They have granted bail, overturned convictions or dismissed charges in cases where evidence showed mutual consent and emotional connection between teenagers. But not every bench agrees. In April, the Madras High Court overturned an acquittal in a case where a 17-year-old girl left home to be with a 23-year-old man. Her family had arranged her marriage elsewhere. The court sentenced the man to 10 years in prison under POCSO. Process as Punishment For Advocate Jaising, this is part of the problem. She said simply giving judges the discretion is not enough. Trials can be long, traumatic and carry the weight of stigma. 'For many people, the process itself becomes the punishment,' she stated. A report from the India Child Protection Fund shows just how overloaded the system is. As of January 2023, nearly 250,000 POCSO cases were pending in special courts created to handle them. Jaising argued for consistency and for a system that does not criminalise teenagers for being teenagers. 'Leaving everything to judicial discretion can result in unequal outcomes,' she warned. A Society in Conflict With Itself This is where India finds itself today caught between the need to protect and the need to understand, the fear of abuse and the reality of young love and between a law that seeks clarity and a society that lives in shades of grey. Lawyer and child rights advocate Bhuvan Ribhu said exceptions cannot be unconditional. He worries about misuse in cases of trafficking or child marriage. He supports discretion, but also faster trials, better rehabilitation of survivors and greater awareness. Not everyone is cautious. Ananashi Ganguly, co-founder of HAQ: Centre for Child Rights, stands with Jaising. 'We cannot avoid reform only because we are afraid of misuse,' she said. According to her, society is changing. The law needs to change with it. As this debate continues, India faces another question: what does protection mean when it becomes punishment? Where does responsibility lie in a law written for children or in a society still learning to talk to them about sex, safety and consent?
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
'Would you worship Bhagwa terrorist?': Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand says 'don't link terrorism with colour'; questions failure to find Malegaon blast culprits
Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand NEW DELHI: The debate over the use of the term 'Saffron Terror', that resumed after the July 31 verdict in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, has refused to die down. Commenting on the term, Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati Maharaj said that colour should not be linked with terrorism. He said those who associate a colour with terrorism are supporting terrorism. The Shankaracharya said, "A terrorist is a does colour mean with the word terrorism? Terrorism is terrorism, and a zero-tolerance policy should be adopted against it... The Malegaon blast happened, but you could not find the person who committed who look for colours in terrorism are supporters of terrorism." The term 'Bhagwa Aatank' or 'saffron terrorism' was first used after the 2002 Gujarat riots, as per a report by the news agency ANI. It was later used again after the 2008 Malegaon blasts. Some political leaders and parties used the term in their statements. The term was also mentioned by then home minister P Chidambaram in an official meeting with police officials. Congress leader Digvijay Singh also used the term in reference to the blasts. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like No annual fees for life UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo The Hindu pontiff also raised questions as to why the government is still unable to catch the culprits of the Malegaon blast case. "We do not wish to comment on the court's proceedings; whatever was done in court, we believe, must have been correct. If these people were found innocent in the court's view, then it is right they were acquitted. But the bigger problem is that the blast did not happen on its own — someone must have done it. Who was it? Where is the Government of India, the state government failing, that someone comes, carries out a blast, and leaves, and despite having vast resources and plenty of time, we are still unable to catch the culprit? This is a big slap on our capability that we cannot apprehend the guilty," he said. On July 31, a special NIA court in Mumbai acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. The court said that the prosecution could not prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt. The court also directed the Maharashtra government to pay Rs 2 lakh compensation to the families of the people who died in the blast, and Rs 50,000 to those who were injured. The seven accused were former MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhankar Dhar Dwivedi (also known as Shankaracharya), and Sameer Kulkarni. "All bail bonds of the accused are cancelled and sureties are discharged," the court said. The court examined 323 witnesses from the prosecution and eight from the defence before giving the verdict. All seven were acquitted of charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Arms Act, and other related charges. The blast occurred on September 29, 2008, near a mosque in Bhikku Chowk area of Malegaon. An explosive device placed on a motorcycle went off, killing six people and injuring 95 others. Initially, 11 people were named as accused, but charges were framed against seven. The lawyer representing the victims' families has said that he will challenge the acquittal in the high court. Earlier, on the eve of the judgment in the Malegaon blast case, Union home minister Amit Shah had said in Parliament that no Hindu can ever be a terrorist. "I am proud to say, no Hindu can ever be a terrorist," Shah had said in Rajya Sabha. Meanwhile, after the NIA court judgment, former Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan also spoke on the matter last week and said that he does not support the use of the term "saffron terror." "Don't use the term 'Saffron terrorism'. If you want to describe such acts, use 'Hindu fundamentalist' or 'Hindu terrorism' instead."
