Supreme Court Order on Evictions in Assam Historic: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday claimed that the recent order by the Supreme Court of India on the evictions in the state is a historic one and has now streamlined all future eviction drives.

The Supreme Court had earlier directed the maintenance of the status quo on evictions until the verification of the Jamabandi registers is completed to ascertain authorised occupants.

The apex court issued these directions while hearing a batch of public interest litigations (PILs) and appeals alleging arbitrary mass eviction drives across various districts in the state.

A bench comprising Justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe observed that the Assam government’s mechanism for removing encroachments incorporates procedural safeguards and aligns with principles of fairness, reasonableness, and due process. The court recorded the Solicitor General’s assurance that the process would be implemented objectively and without bias.

The outlined procedure includes constituting a joint committee of forest and revenue officials to examine residents’ claims, issuing notices to alleged unauthorised occupants, providing an opportunity to submit documentary evidence, and proceeding with eviction only after determining the status of encroachment through a speaking order.

A 15-day notice period must be given before any eviction action. If occupants are found to be outside notified forest boundaries, their cases will be referred to the revenue department.

The court clarified that occupation within forest areas, including by gaon panchayats, is permissible if backed by sufficient proof in the Jamabandi registers maintained by the Forest Department or under the provisions of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (Forest Rights Act). Individuals recognised under this Act are legally entitled to occupy forest land and cannot be evicted.

The petitions pertain to long-settled communities in villages located within reserved forests such as Doyang, South Nambar, Jamuna Madunga, Barpani, Lutumai, and Golaghat.

Petitioners contended that their families had resided there for over 70 years, often with state-provided amenities, and urged structured safeguards rather than blanket evictions. They invoked constitutional protections under Articles 14 (equality) and 21 (right to life) and referenced prior directions from the Guwahati High Court balancing forest conservation with occupants’ rights.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma termed the Supreme Court’s order a historic win for the state government, as it has now established a clear, systematic process for carrying out evictions while ensuring due process and verification of claims. This, he noted, strengthens the administration’s efforts to protect reserved forests and reclaim encroached land in an orderly and lawful manner.

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