Kerala Private Forest (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971

The respondent, KokiYat Estates, had mortgaged extensive plantation land to a bank, with the State of Kerala acting as guarantor. Subsequent land‑ceiling and private‑forest statutes vested large portions of the mortgaged land in the State free of encumbrances, and later the State paid off the loan and obtained an assig…

The appellants purchased 14 acres of private forest land in Kerala before the appointed day of 10 May 1971 and sought exemption from vesting under the Kerala Private Forest (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971, invoking Section 3(3). The Forest Tribunal granted the exemption, but the State later sought review, which was …

The appellants, the Conservator and Custodian of Forest, appealed a Kerala High Court decision that ordered payment of compensation to the respondents, Sobha John Koshy and anr., for land in Wayanad that could not be restored. The land was originally claimed to be vested in the Government under the Kerala Private Fores…