இனாம் ஒழிப்பு சட்டம் 1963

Greetings to everyone. On the birthday of the late great leader Kamaraj, who created historical achievements in education, agriculture, and industry in this country, on July 15th, I would like to share some thoughts regarding the Minor Inam Abolition and Ryotwari Conversion Act of 1963, brought forth during his tenure.

About 200 years ago, especially during the reign of the Vijayanagara kings and various other monarchs, many types of Inams were granted. Major Inams encompassed an entire village or several villages, granted to the people living there. Minor Inams were small parcels of land granted to poets, soldiers, government officials, Brahmins, temple musicians, Nadaswaram artists, Devadasis, and others. Instead of receiving salaries, they were allowed to collect the revenue from that land.

The ownership of the land remained with the king, while the usufructuary right, the income derived from it, was with the cultivator. He had to pay one-sixth of the produce as tax to the government. In this manner, tens of thousands of acres in Tamil Nadu were given as small Inams. Many who received these Inams, unable to cultivate them themselves, had sold them, mortgaged them, or gifted them to others. Those who obtained deeds through such transactions enjoyed the land.

Great leader Kamaraj took charge as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on June 13, 1954. He served as Chief Minister for nine years, until October 21, 1963. During his tenure, a problem arose concerning these Inam lands. The heirs of the Inamdars demanded that the lands be allotted to them. The farmers who had developed and cultivated the land requested that it be given to them. The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department asked that neither party be given the land, but that it be handed over to the concerned temples.

To investigate this issue, a committee was formed comprising Mr. Sadashivam, MLA from Aravakurichi, and Mr. K.G. Palanisamy Gounder, MLA from Kangayam. Their recommendation was to grant patta to the farmers if they declared the lands, and if the Inamdars claimed them and were in possession, to grant them patta. If neither party was in possession, it should be given to the temples. Kamaraj decided to enact a law based on this.

As a result, the Madras Minor Inam Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari Bill, 1962, was introduced on October 27, 1962. Kamaraj did not directly make the bill into law. Kamaraj always thought decisively and clearly before making a decision, but once a decision was made, he would not back down. To examine the bill, a Joint Select Committee was appointed on May 7, 1962.

A committee of 21 members was formed, headed by Mr. R. Venkataraman, who was then a Member of the Legislative Assembly and later became the President of India. Professor Anbazhagan was also a member. Dr. P.V. Rajamannar, who served as a distinguished judge of India, was a member. After examining all aspects, the Joint Select Committee submitted its report on September 9, 1963. Based on this, Kamaraj passed the Tamil Nadu Minor Inams Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari Act, 1963, in the Assembly, abolishing the Inam system and providing for the issuance of Ryotwari patta. It received the assent of the President of India on January 28, 1964, and came into effect as a government order on February 5, 1964.

To identify who was cultivating these lands and which were Inam lands, Special Deputy Tahsildars were appointed zone-wise. In our region, the Special Deputy Tahsildars appointed in Erode, Coimbatore, Salem, and Coimbatore districts received applications from farmers cultivating Inam lands, obtained their documents, and after proper inquiry, considering village Karnam and Inam Thuyam records, issued patta.

The procedure followed was: Section 81 stipulated that if the Inamdar was in possession of the land, patta could be granted to him. For farmers who had purchased and were cultivating the land, under Section 82(1)(a), if they had been cultivating the land continuously for 60 years prior to 1960, patta would be granted without any conditions. Under Section 82(1)(b), if they had been in continuous possession for 12 years prior to 1960, patta would be granted with the condition that the fair rent for the land be paid to the government. This was the next sub-clause. If neither the Inamdar nor the purchaser of the land was in possession, the land could be given to the temple. This was the legal provision.

Based on this legal provision, inquiries were conducted across Tamil Nadu, Inams were abolished, and Ryotwari patta was issued to the farmers. Farmers who received this Ryotwari patta accepted the land as their own, dug wells, installed pumps, built houses, planted coconut trees, and have been enjoying the land for a long time. These inquiries were completed around 1970, and they have been in possession for nearly 55 years.

Recently, regarding the incident in Karur, in Karur district, there is a dispute over approximately 471 acres of land, involving 3390 pattadars and 384.95 acres. One group claims these are temple lands, while the farmers claim they are lands for which they have received patta. All these lands were granted patta after proper inquiry under Section 8(1) or 82(1)(b) of the Tamil Nadu Minor Inam Abolition and Conversion into Ryotwari Act, 1970.

During the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's rule in Tamil Nadu, a zero value was assigned to temple lands, prohibiting their encumbrance. This settlement inquiry took place. After the law came into effect in 1963, these lands were recorded in the name of the temple in the first RSR or Inam Register created by the British in 1912. Based on this 1912 register, all lands were declared temple lands, and the concerned officials and sub-registrars issued notices stating that encumbrances should not be created and that the value is zero.

However, under the law of 1963, after conducting an inquiry and granting patta, the 1912 RSR became obsolete and disappeared. To give you an example, regarding Inam lands received by Devadasis, when the Devadasi Inam Abolition Act came, the government decided that even if Devadasis retained the lands they received as Inam or had encumbered them, they had full ownership and were eligible for patta. What will happen to the lands we have cultivated, the lands we have maintained, the lands we have developed? After the abolition of Inams under the 1963 Act, farmers became full pattadars.

In this regard, many parties objected to the Tamil Nadu government's zero value policy. Investigating this, the Land Administration Commissioner of Tamil Nadu issued an order on May 15, 2025. In that order, it is stated that those who received patta under Sections 81, 82(1)(a), and 82(1)(b) have absolute property, their personal asset, and no one else has any claim.

Furthermore, I must mention the case of Kumban Lakshmana vs. Thangirala Venkateswara Rao in 1949, which went to the Privy Council concerning Inam land. Justice S. Madhavan Nair clearly ruled that whoever cultivates the land owns it, and it belongs to no one else.

Given this, in the Karur issue, under the guidance of the newly sworn-in Chief Minister of the DMK government, Mr. J. Joseph Vijay, the Hon'ble Minister for Revenue, Mr. K.S. Sengottaiyan, who was born in Velnagudi, has been a minister for a long time, possesses extensive experience, and the dynamic young minister for Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments, Mr. Ramesh, along with senior officials from the Revenue Department, have decided to cancel the zero value on September 7, 2026. Some people are saying that by not granting patta, they are losing land worth 25,000 crores. Patta was already granted in 1970. They have saved the farmers by canceling the zero value, which prohibited buying or selling.

I express my gratitude to this government. Furthermore, in Tamil Nadu, especially in Tiruppur, Coimbatore, Erode, Dindigul, and Karur districts, where farmers have been using lands under the Inam Abolition Act, have obtained patta, and are engaged in agriculture and industry, the zero value determination has been completely canceled. The new government has resolved the hardship faced by farmers who could not get bank loans for two acres of land, loans for their children's education, loans to buy cattle, or mortgage their land.

I have met with the Hon'ble Minister for Revenue, Mr. K.S. Sengottaiyan, twice and discussed this matter. I humbly request him. Yesterday, a Public Interest Litigation filed by Radhakrishnan came up before the Madurai High Court in a similar case. Senior advocates Raghavachari, Mr. Srinivasan, Shanmuga Selvam, and I appeared in that case. The judges clearly inquired and stated that they would not grant an interim order. They have requested full details of which lands are temple lands and which lands were granted patta from Inams by the 29th of this month. The final hearing will take place at 3 PM on the 11th.

Therefore, I express my gratitude to the current Tamil Nadu government for implementing the objective of the law brought forth by Kamaraj, which protects the welfare of farmers and the welfare of the people. I also extend my thanks to all those involved in this righteous struggle, to the various leaders of my farmers' association, and to Eswaran Gurusamy, who was present yesterday. Thank you, thank you, Jai Hind.