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Section 63AB, Section 63AC and Section 63AD of the Gujarat Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1948

This is the regularization cluster. It deals with old invalid transfers, later bona fide purchasers, industrial or agricultural validation routes, and the consequence structure that grew after the 2015 amendment era.

Contents
  1. What this cluster is for
  2. Section 63AB
  3. Section 63AC
  4. Section 63AD
  5. Where Section 43(1D) fits
  6. Practical route in real files
  7. Key judgments
  8. Checklist
  9. Primary references

1) What this cluster is for

The regularization cluster is designed to deal with old transfers that were technically invalid under Section 63, but where the legislature later created a curing or validation route for limited categories of cases. This is not a broad pardon for every illegal transfer. It is a controlled statutory solution for identified situations.

The practical point: regularization is a statutory exception, not a general equity argument.

2) Section 63AB

Section 63AB is the major 2015-era regularization provision. The Gujarat High Court has explained that, for Section 63AB, the word “person” can include juristic persons such as companies or cooperative societies in the statutory context, and the section can validate certain last transactions on or before 30 June 2015 by payment of 10% of Jantri value, subject to the Act’s conditions.

In practice, Section 63AB comes up when an earlier invalid transfer has been followed by a later valid or regularizable last transaction. The law then asks whether the final purchaser falls within the statutory rescue route and whether the factual chain fits the provision.

3) Section 63AC

Section 63AC creates a special permission route for certain purchasers and, in the right case, allows post facto compliance. Gujarat decisions have treated this as a real statutory permission mechanism and not a mere paper objection. If the applicant has already purchased and then seeks permission in the statutory window, the Collector or Mamlatdar must apply the actual section, not improvise a narrower restriction unsupported by the statute.

4) Section 63AD

Section 63AD is the invalid-transfer consequence provision in this cluster. The Gujarat High Court has described it as dealing with invalid transactions under Section 63 by imposing a penalty tied to the prevailing Jantri value and directing restoration of the land to the position before the invalid transfer.

Do not assume Section 63AD automatically wipes the slate clean. It usually works through penalty and restoration logic, not a free forgiveness of the defect.

5) Where Section 43(1D) fits

Section 43(1D) is part of the restricted-tenure architecture. The same broader Article of the Act also covers Section 43 transfers and, in later amendments, makes certain purchase categories subject to Section 43’s sanction logic. In real files, if the land is still under Section 43 restrictions, a Section 63AB or 63AC route may not solve the issue unless the whole legal path is read together.

Important clarification: Section 43B is a different provision about reasonable rent, so it is not the regularization section. The regularization logic you actually need is in the Section 63AB / 63AC / 63AD cluster and the Section 43(1D) restricted-tenure background.

6) Practical route in real files

  1. Identify the full chain of transfer dates and parties.
  2. See whether the last transaction falls within the Section 63AB/63AC window.
  3. Check whether the buyer is agriculturist, company, society, trust, or other entity.
  4. Check whether the land is still under Section 43 restriction or has been converted.
  5. Apply for the correct statutory relief and be ready to pay the prescribed Jantri-linked amount where applicable.
  6. If the land is being regularized, ensure the mutation chain follows the statutory order and does not skip the underlying validation step.

In Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar matters, this cluster often appears in older housing-cooperative, company, and multi-party land chain files. The real question is not “can the parties say it was regularized?” The question is whether the correct statutory box was actually checked.

7) Key judgments

Case Key summary
State of Gujarat v. Nandubhai Mahasukhbhai Patel Strong authority on the meaning of “person” in Section 63AB and the Jantri-linked validation logic.
Shashikant Vasudevbhai Patel Explains how the amendment was understood in the 2015 regularization context and how the 10% Jantri route was used in practice.
Sonaben Naranbhai Patel Shows Section 63AB operating in a live land dispute and how the Mamlatdar handled the application on the ground.
Abdul Rahim Abdul Sattar Foda Useful on the interrelationship between Section 63AB and invalid-transfer proceedings.
Nijanand Jogani Abhiyan Trust and later Section 63AC cases Useful for the post facto or special-permission side of the regularization cluster.

The policy lesson is clear. These sections are meant to cure defined historical defects, not to authorize any new illegal transfer you want to label as regularization.

8) Checklist

Question Why it matters
What was the last valid transaction date? Determines whether Section 63AB applies.
Is the last purchaser agriculturist? Central to the validation route.
Is the buyer a company, society or trust? May still be covered, depending on the statutory reading and facts.
Is Section 43 restriction still alive? May require a separate permission or premium path.
Has the correct Jantri-linked amount been paid? Usually a condition for validation.

9) Primary references

This is the regularization article. If you want to extend the series further, the next useful cluster is Section 84C delay cases and Section 32M default / 32P disposal.