The apex court issues mandamus to implement seven-point condition for land swapping by business entities

KATHMANDU, May 12: The Supreme Court has set the criteria and conditions to prevent misuse of the land ceiling exemption facility being provided to the commercial entities.

The constitutional bench of the apex court has established a set of standards regarding its verdict prohibiting the swap of land plots with threshold exemption facility belonging to Giri Bandhu Tea Estate. Additionally, the SC has directed the transfer of 51 bigha of land from the company's holdings exceeding the land ceiling limit and not utilized for tea production, to be placed under state authority.

The SC has overturned the decisions made by earlier governments that allowed using the land with ceiling exemption for realty transactions. While maintaining a seven-point standard, the apex court has issued mandamus citing to enforce the measures also in other similar business houses.

The SC’s constitutional bench in its full text of the verdict, has maintained the provision mandatory to analyze first the detailed area of specific land.  Both the land taken for swap should have capacity to produce similar products.

With taking the land plots for swap the one in the new location must be taken for feasibility study to assess its production capacity. The advice from technical analysts should be taken in this regard.

Likewise, the proportion of prevailing land pricings in their respective locations should also be considered. In addition, the land swapping should not affect the number of employment being offered by those land plots.

The SC has also asked the concerned firms to carry out an environmental impact assessment. While seeking the permission of the authorities concerned, the land owners should provide sufficient evidence for the purpose of the land swapping.   

Previously, the SC in February 7, 2024 had overturned the decision of the previous government led by KP Oli to allow land swapping in the Giri Bandhu Tea Estate case in Jhapa. The tea estate aimed to swap its Birtamod land, valued at Rs 200 million per bigha, for less valuable land in Prithvinagar, Jhapa.

Advocate Om Prakash Aryal challenged the amendment to the Land Act, specifically disputing the provision allowing Giri Bandhu Tea Estate to conduct the land swap. The tea producer and similar companies were granted permission to hold land exceeding the prescribed limit for business purposes. In the writ filed on August 15, 2021, Aryal blamed Former Prime Minister Oli of using political influence to swap the land for commercial interests.  

 
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