Amreli: In response to riots and mob violence, the Gujarat government has extended the Gujarat Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Eviction from Premises in Disturbed Areas Act, 1991, to parts of Savarkundla town in Amreli district.
Savarkundla town has an approximate population of 12,000 belonging to the minority community, out of its total 80,000 population.
This move marks Savarkundla as the second town in Amreli to come under the law, which aims to prevent distressed property sales resulting from an apparent increase in residents from one community in an area.
“All transfers of immovable properties situated in the disturbed areas made during the aforesaid specified period shall be null and void, and no immovable property situated in the said disturbed areas shall, during the aforesaid specified period of this notification, be transferred except with the previous sanction of the Collector, Amreli district,” said a state government statement.
Known as the Disturbed Areas Act, it will remain in effect in Savarkundla for a duration of five years until July 11, 2028.
A notification from the Revenue Department declares the specified areas in the Savarkundla town police station of Amreli District as “disturbed areas” due to the intensity and duration of riots and mob violence.
Amreli District Collector Ajay Dahiya confirmed receiving a copy on this order.
The Sub-Divisional magistrate of Savarkundla had submitted a proposal to the district collector office, requesting the inclusion of certain areas under the Act.
The office subsequently sought the opinion of the superintendent of police (SP) in Amreli before forwarding the proposal to the state government.
The office had sent letters to the government on March 31 and later on June 28.
The Act has now been extended to two wards of the Savarkundla municipality in the old town area, falling within the jurisdiction of the Savarkundla town police station.
About a year and a half ago, parts of Amreli town, the district headquarters of Amreli, were also brought under the purview of the Act by the state government.
