The Assam government has implemented a new standard operating procedure (SOP) regarding land transactions between people of different religions in the state. Announcing this after the cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that this step has been taken keeping in mind the sensitive social structure of the state and national security.
Chief Minister Sarma clarified that if a Hindu sells land to a Muslim, a Muslim to a Hindu, or a person of any other religion like Christianity, Buddhism or Jainism, it will be considered an ‘inter-religious transaction’ and it will undergo a detailed investigation process.
How will the investigation process be done
Sarma informed that the process of land transfer under the SOP will be completed in the following steps:
- First of all the application will be submitted to the zonal officer.
- After preliminary investigation, the proposal will be sent to the Deputy Commissioner (DC).
- If the transaction is between parties of the same religion, there will be no special investigation.
- In inter-religious cases, the DC will send the file to the Revenue Department.
- The nodal officer of the Revenue Department will forward it to the Special Branch (SB) of Assam Police.
The Special Branch will investigate on four major points:
- Validity of land ownership and authenticity of documents.
- Investigation of the buyer’s source of funds.
- Possibility of any threat to national security.
- After all these investigations, the Special Branch will submit its report, based on which the DC will take a final decision.
Rules will also apply to NGOs
The Chief Minister also said that if NGOs from outside Assam want to buy land in the state, they will also have to follow the same SOP. He warned that some outside entities, especially from states like Kerala, buy land and set up institutions that could become a security threat in the future. However, NGOs registered in Assam will be exempted from these additional investigations.