Some farmers in Koorachund, Kanthalad, and Chakkittapara villages of Kozhikode district have accused village officials of bypassing the District Collector’s order to receive land tax from them.
O.D. Thomas Ottaplakkal, chairman of an action committee of settler farmers, told the media on Wednesday that they had bought the land from the erstwhile royal families of Kizhakedath, Mallisseri, Purakkod, and Narikkot since 1940 and had title deeds and property documents to prove their ownership. They had constructed houses on the land, had been cultivating there, and paying tax till 2002.
However, Forest officials thereafter demarcated their property and installed stones claiming that the land had been encroached upon. The farmers forcefully removed the stones in 2004. The issue was raised in the Assembly, and the government ordered a joint verification by Revenue and Forest departments in 2005. It took a decade for the completion of verification, Mr. Thomas claimed.
During meetings in 2013, 2016, and 2018, the government had directed the District Collector and the Divisional Forest Officer to examine the documents for the land purchased before January 1, 1977, and permit the farmers to pay tax. The District Collector issued an order too.
Though tax collection was officially opened on January 12, 2019, village officials did not toe the line, Mr. Thomas alleged. Farmers such as Panangad Padmanabhan, Jesy Kariyathumpara, and Soumini Kanthalad claimed that they could not sell or pledge the land for taking bank loans to meet urgent needs because of the confusion over ownership. Moreover, Forest officials were not allowing them to replant rubber trees, clear forests, or cut trees either.
They recalled that one farmer had allegedly ended his life by hanging himself outside the village office at Chembanoda in 2017 after repeated attempts to pay tax turned futile. Mr. Thomas said the farmers would have to resort to a similar step if the existing situation continued. “We have submitted memorandums to the Chief Minister, Ministers, elected representatives, and officials explaining our decision,” he added.
