Guj govt brings parts of Anand town under Disturbed Areas Act

The Gujarat government on Friday brought some parts of Anand town under the Disturbed Areas Act to prevent distress sale of properties in communally-sensitive areas.

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani gave his assent to implement the provisions of the Act in different parts of Anand town in central Gujarat after going through a proposal sent by the district collector of Anand, a government release said on Friday.

Some of the main areas in the town that have been declared as 'disturbed' include Moti Khodiyar, Lambhvel Road, area opposite the railway station, Gujarati chowk, Mayfair Road, 100-feet road, area near new bus stand, Mahavir Park, Jain Society, Anand-Vidyanagar Road, Avkuda Road, near Town Hall, 80-feet road, D Z High School and area near H M Patel statue.

This is for the first time provisions of the Act have been invoked in Anand.

The Gujarat Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Eviction from Premises in Disturbed Areas Act, 1991, commonly referred to as the Disturbed Areas Act, is currently in force in some areas of Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Bharuch, Kapadvanj and Godhra.

Under the Act, permission of district collector is mandatory for sale or transfer of property in the areas which were notified as 'disturbed' to ensure that the sale was not out of any distress or compulsion and to see that the seller had received a fair price.

The state government has taken this decision after getting representation from different social organisations and community leaders of Anand, the release said.

Several incidents which led to communal tension were reported in these areas in the past and there is possibility that such communal flare up may happen in the future too, it added.

"To maintain law and order as well as to preserve peace and harmony among all the communities, the state government, in larger public interest, has decided to implement Disturbed Areas Act in different parts of Anand," the release said.