K C PADMAKSHY Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is against an order passed by the Forest Tribunal adjudicating an application under Section 8 of the Kerala Private Forests (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971. The applicant is the appellant.

(2.) THE claim petition was initially dismissed. That led to M.F.A.No.928 of 2011. The matter was remitted to consider the question whether the petition schedule property was, in fact, cultivated with cardamom as contended by the appellant because the fact that she had title to the property was established by documents. The question that had to be thereafter considered was whether "there was personal cultivation by the appellant".

(3.) THE learned counsel for the appellant, also citing the decision in Joseph v. State of Kerala [2007(3) KLT 144(SC)] and that in Parameswara Sastrigal v. State of Kerala [2008(2) KLT 461(FB)], argued that the Tribunal having found in this round that the applicant has established that she was the owner of the property under a registered document of title and she had the intention of cultivating the same as on the appointed day, her claim ought to have been allowed at least to the extent that could be held by a family in terms of the provisions of the Kerala Land Reforms Act, 1963 and therefore, the exemption to the extent available in Section 3(3) of the Act ought to have been granted and the Tribunal's view that the applicant failed to prove that the total extent of land held by her is within the ceiling limit as applicable to her under Section 82 of the Kerala Land Reforms Act.