Post-commencement transfer of granted land without prior Government permission is void, even if preceded by an earlier agreement to sell.

A sale deed executed and registered after commencement of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands) Act, 1978, is void if made without previous Government permission, even where it follows an earlier agreement to sell. The Act treats "transfer" broadly, including agreements to sell, and its scheme protects granted lands by invalidating transfers made in breach of the statutory conditions. A pre-Act agreement did not validate the later post-Act conveyance, because the operative transfer occurred only on registration of the sale deed. Resumption proceedings were therefore sustainable.

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Issues: Whether a sale deed executed and registered after the commencement of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands) Act, 1978, pursuant to an earlier agreement to sell, is void for want of previous Government permission and attracts resumption under the Act.

Analysis: The definition of "transfer" in Section 3(e) of the Act is inclusive and expressly covers an agreement to sell. The Act was enacted to protect granted lands belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and to restore such lands where transfers were effected in breach of the statutory scheme. Section 4(1) renders void any transfer made in contravention of the grant conditions or Section 4(2), while Section 4(2) prohibits any transfer or acquisition of granted land after commencement of the Act without previous Government permission. Although the agreement to sell was executed before the Act commenced, the operative conveyance by registered sale deed occurred later and without such permission. Under the Act's scheme, the earlier agreement did not save the later transfer from the statutory prohibition.

Conclusion: The post-commencement sale deed without previous Government permission was void under Section 4 of the Act, and the resumption proceedings were sustainable.

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