West Bengal Escheats and Forfeitures Act, 2012
No: 14 Dated: Aug, 01 2012
THE WEST BENGAL ESCHEATS AND FORFEITURES ACT, 2012
West Bengal Act XIV of 2012
An Act to provide for taking over of charge, management, administration, supervision, custody and disposal of property vested in the State of West Bengal by escheat or lapse, or as bona vacantia and unclaimed property.
Whereas it is expedient, in the public interest, to provide and make provisions for the administration, development, control, custody, management, supervision and disposal of escheats, lapsed or unclaimed property in the State of West Bengal and for the matters incidental thereto;
It is hereby enacted in the Sixty-third Year of the Republic of India, by the Legislature of West Bengal, as follows:-
CHAPTER I
Preliminary
1. Short title, extent, application and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Escheats and Forfeitures Act, 2012.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of West Bengal.
(3) It applies to all property, which according to the Constitution of India or any other law for the time being in force, has vested or having become vested or shall vest in the State Government by escheat or lapse, or as bona vacantia, or which is forfeited or having become forfeited or shall forfeit in the State Government under the provision of this Act:
Provided that in respect of immovable property that comes under this Act, the same should be recorded in Collector's Khatian i.e. Khatiah No. 1:
Provided further that the property mentioned in the first proviso should be brought into 'Land Bank' of the State Government, and its disposal is to be governed in such manner as may be decided by the State Government in respect of other categories of Government land in the Land Bank:
Provided also that the immovable property as already brought under Collector's Khatian as 'escheated property' and it is already settled by the collector in the manner as is followed in respect of management of Government land, such property may not be brought under the purview of this Act for its management under this Act:
Provided also that the immovable property as already brought under Collector's Khatian as 'escheated property' and still remains unsealed may come under the purview of this Act subject to the condition that it should also be brought into 'Land Bank' and its disposal also to be governed in such manner as may be decided by the State Government in respect of other categories of Government land in the 'Land Bank'.
(4) It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint in that behalf.
Note. - For the purpose of this section 'Land Bank' means a separate account to be maintained by Land and Land Reforms Department in respect of land and property to be vested under this Act.
2. Definitions. - In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "Appellate Authority" means the Secretary, Judicial Department of the State Government or such authority that the State Government may by general or special order delegate such function to;
(b) "Claimant" means a person who had a legal claim on the previous owner, or just or natural right or claim to succeed to the previous owner's property or to any part thereof and claiming any interest in escheated property;
(c) "Collector" means the Collector of a district and includes an Additional Collector or any other officer appointed, authorised or empowered by the State Government to exercise all or any of the powers of a Collector under this Act;
(d) "Competent Authority" means any person or authority of the Judicial Department of the State Government authorised to perform the functions of the competent authority under this Act or any other persons or authorities may be authorised by the State Government, by notification in the Official Gazette, to perform such functions of the competent authority or to perform different functions;
(e) "court" means any civil court of competent jurisdiction;
(f) "deceased" means the person on whose death property has accrued to the State Government by escheat or lapse;
(g) "escheat" with all its grammatical variations means the automatic transfer to the State Government of property of a person who dies intestate without any legal heirs according to his personal law and in case of an artificial person such as a corporation, trust, association of persons or society recognized by law to be capable of owning property, whether in its own name or in the name of any governing body or office bearer by whatever name called or otherwise, the transfer to the State Government of property of such artificial person on its dissolution, winding up, becoming defunct whether by operation of law, declaration or in fact, including the circumstances mentioned in section 3 such fact being one that only the Competent Authority will have the power to determine in the manner prescribed;
(h) "escheated property" means any land, building or other real or personal property or any interest, legal or equitable, in it or any interest in any corporeal or incorporeal hereditament and includes any movable or immovable or any abandoned immovable property, which has vested or having become vested or shall vest in the State Government by escheat or lapse, or as bona vacantia under the provisions of this Act;
(i) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(j) "property" means and includes both or any one of the escheated property or unclaimed property, as the case it may be;
(k) "State Government" means the State Government of West Bengal and "State" means the State of West Bengal;
(l) "unclaimed property" means any movable or immovable property or any article or treasure trove of any description or any interest, legal or equitable, in it which is forfeited or having become forfeited or shall forfeit to the State Government under the provisions of this Act;
(m) the "masculine" shall include the feminine, the singular and the plural unless repugnant or contrary to the context.
CHAPTER II
Escheated Property
3. Escheats. - Notwithstanding anything contained in other laws for the time being in force, where a person dies intestate and without leaving legal heirs according to his personal law or any corporation, trust, association or society or the governing body of such corporation, trust, association or society, by whatever name called, recognised by law to be capable of owning property, whether in its own name or in the name of any governing body or office bearer by whatever name called or otherwise, the transfer to the State Government of the property of such artificial person on its dissolution, winding up, becoming defunct whether by operation of law, declaration or in fact or has ceased to exist or is unable to hold the general meeting and reconstitute its new executive committee consecutively for last five years, the property of such person or artificial person, as the case may, be shall automatically stand transferred to the State Government, and the State Government may cause possession or management or administration of such property to be taken over by escheat or lapse, or as bona vacantia for want of rightful owner, and on such transfer having taken place automatically on such finding of fact as referred to in clause (g) of section 2 by the Competent Authority, the State Government shall become the owner of the property without any further act or document being needed.