Kohima: The Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench shut down appeals against the cancellation of land pattas at New Ministers Hill, Kohima. A Division Bench comprised of Justice N Unni Krishnan Nair and Justice Nchumbemo Mozhui delivered the judgment on October 9. The ruling affirms earlier eviction proceedings and the cancellation of titles finalized in March 2024.
The legal fight involved a 336 by 44 foot plot. One appellant claimed to buy the land in 2010. They gifted a portion to a second appellant in 2016, who then secured a separate patta. Officials moved to evict the occupants under the Nagaland Eviction of Persons in Unauthorized Occupation of Public Land Act, 1971.
Court records show the original sale deed from September 28, 2010, was never registered. The purchaser was a minor at the time. Judges declared the document legally worthless. Because the deed held no weight, the court ruled no rights could transfer to the claimants.
The court also tackled the issue of how the patta was issued. It pointed out that the Deputy Commissioner of Kohima handed out the allotment without proper government authorization. The bench noted, "It is not a Patta issued through the process of mutation, pursuant to transfer of land by way of sale. In so far as the allotment of Government land is concerned, there is a standing policy of not allowing such allotments without the express approval of the Government."
Arguments based on Rule 26 of the Settlement Rules failed to gain traction. The court decided that since the allotment was void from the start, those protections did not apply. The justices left a December 12, 2025, judgment untouched, effectively ending the challenge.
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