FOR a country where land is not only a resource but also is a source of legal disputes or social conflicts, a law to address the conflicts or to bring order to this chaotic landscape is necessary. It is a popular idea that land law is considered a branch of civil law. Gradually this idea is changing to address the disputes and crimes related to lands. However, a new law named the Land Crime Prevention and Remedy Act, 2023, has been enacted to prevent and ensure the redressal of land-related crimes. In Bangladesh disputes related to land constitute a significant portion of legal cases, and this law was introduced with the intention to streamline dispute resolution and protect land ownership rights. As its implementation has just started, there remains a significant question: Is this law effective and comprehensive enough to bring meaningful changes in this sector?
This law has outlined many important aspects, like what land-related crimes are, their definition and classification, which also includes land-related fraud, document forgery and the fraudulent transactions. It has certain provisions to address the disputes related to land or any crime mentioned in this section faster through tribunals. As it is already known to all of us that in Bangladesh many disputes or many suits related to land are held in the courts for a long period, the parties still do not get their solution. One of the most important aspects of this new legislation is the introduction of fast-track tribunals and arbitration alongside court proceedings to avoid the monotonous and notorious delays of our judicial system regarding disputes related to land, ensure fair outcomes related to these suits, and reduce the burden on the judiciary. Also, while it talks about the offences related to land, it also gives the provisions for the strict penalties for those offences. As a result, these provisions can serve as a deterrent against any kind of violations related to land law.
听But there remains a concern regarding this act鈥檚 enforceability. The successful implementation of any kind of legal reforms depends on the capacity and integrity of institutions related to that field. In our country, land administration is corruption-stricken, with inefficiency and a lack of coordination among the departments of these sectors. Though there are many important objectives of this law, many legal experts and members of our society have highlighted a very important concern, which is this act鈥檚 alignment with constitutional principles. A transfer of jurisdiction is seen in this law, and that the jurisdiction shifts from civil courts to executive magistrates for restoring illegally dispossessed lands. This point undermines the separation of powers, which could lead to administrative overreach. There is another point to be noted: this act is not fully effective for the marginalised communities, particularly for the Chittagong Hill Tracts. There are many indigenous populations or landless people who lack formal documents for their landholding, and this act could adversely affect those people, resulting in evictions from their own property and legal challenges. This act is an attempt to expedite the resolutions of land disputes through executive magistrates and mobile courts, but this attempt has been introduced with many scepticisms. Many critics have highlighted that this approach could result in procedural complexity, especially for the legal frameworks which are already existing for land disputes under civil law. And as a result, the overlapping jurisdictions and contradictory rulings raise concerns about legal consistency and fairness. Also, this act has provided provisions for a time frame of 180 days for disposal of cases which aims for efficiency, but it may not be effective at the current state of judiciary and administrative systems of our country; also, the insufficient independent mechanism or tribunal system for trying legal disputes may complicate the implementation of this timeline.
The Land Crime Prevention and Remedy 2023 is a significant legislative effort for the redressal of land-related crimes. However, concerns were raised by legal experts and members of our civil society highlighting the need for reassessment of some of the provisions of this act so they align with the principles of our constitution and effectively serve the purpose of this act. A balanced and equitable approach is needed to address the land-related crimes in Bangladesh. Law and its proper enforcement can ensure lasting solutions to land-related challenges.
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听Farjana Akter Mimi is a law student at Bangladesh University of Professionals.
