The Gujarat Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1972

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

GOVERNMENT OF GUJARAT 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LEGISLATIVE AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gujarat Act No. 12 of 1973 
 

 

 

 

 

The Gujarat Public Premises 

(Eviction of Unauthorised 

Occupants ) 

 

 

Act, 1972 

 
 

 

 

(As modified upto the 31st  August, 2007) 

 

 



 

THE GUJARAT PUBLIC PREMISES (EVICTION OF UNAUTHORISED 

OCCUPANTS) ACT, 1973 

 

CONTENTS. 

PREAMBLE. 

SECTIONS.        PAGE NO. 

 

1. Short title, extent and commencement. 

 

2. Definitions. 

 

3. Appointment of competent officers. 

 

4. Issue of notice to show cause against order of eviction. 

 

5. Eviction of unauthorised occupants. 

 

6. Disposal of property left on public premises by unauthorised occupants. 

 

7. Power to require payment of rent or damages, in respect of public premises. 

 

8. Power of competent officers. 

 

9. Appeal. 

 

10. Finality of order. 

 

11. Offences and penalty. 

 

12. Power to obtain information. 

 

13. Liability of heirs and legal representatives. 

 

14. Recovery of rent, etc. as an arrear of land revenue. 

 

15. Rent to be recovered by deduction from salary or wages of employee. 

 

16. Bar of jurisdiction. 

 

17. Protection of action taken in good faith. 

 

18. Power to make rules. 

 

19. Repeal, saving and validation. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

GUJARAT ACT NO. 12 OF 1973.1* 

 

[ THE GUJARAT PUBLIC PREMISES (EVICTION OF UNAUTHORISED 

OCCUPANTS) ACT, 1972.] 

[26th June, 1973.] 

Amended by Guj. 29 of 1981. 

Amended by Guj. 6 of 2004. 

Amended by Guj. 28 of 2006. 

 

 

An Act to provide for the eviction of unauthorised occupants from public premises 

and for certain incidental matters. 
 

It is hereby enacted in the Twenty-third Year of the Republic of India as follows:- 

 

1. (1) This Act may be called the Gujarat Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised 

Occupants) Act, 1972. 

 

(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Gujarat. 

 

(3) It shall come into force at once. 

 

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— 

 

(a) "Competent Officer" means an officer appointed as such by the State Government 

under section 3; 

 

(b) "corporate authority" means any Municipal Corporation, Municipality, Panchayat 

or other Corporation referred to in clause (f) of this section; 

 

(c) "land" includes benefits to arise out of land and things attached to the earth or 

permanently fastened to the earth or permanently fastened to anything attached to the 

earth; 

 

(d) "premises" means any land or any building or part of a building and includes— 

 

(i) the garden, grounds and outhouses, if any, appertaining to such building 

or part of a building, and 

 

(ii) any fittings affixed to such building or part of a building for the more 

beneficial enjoyment thereof; 

 

(e) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; 

 

(f) "public premises" means any premises* belonging to or taken on lease or 

requisitioned by, or on behalf of, the State Government, and includes any premises 

belonging to, or taken on lease by, or on behalf of- 

 

(i) any Municipal Corporation constituted under the Bombay Provincial 

Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 or any Municipality constituted under the 

Gujarat Municipalities Act, 1963; 

 

(ii) a panchayatconstituted under the Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1961. 2** 

 

(iii) any Corporation (not being a company as defined in section 3 of the 

Companies Act, 1956) established by or under a Central or State Act, and 

owned or controlled by the State Government;3[ ] 

 
4[(iv) any University established or incorporated by or under any Law in the 

Short title, extent 

and 

commencement. 

Definitions. 

Bom. LIX of 1949. 

Guj. 34 of 1964. 

Guj. VI of 1962. 

I of 1956. 



State of Gujarat or any institution recognised by the University Grants 

Commission or declared by the Central Government to be a University, in 

accordance with the provisions of clause (f) of section 2 or of section 3, as 

the case may be, of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956;] 5[and] 

 
6[(v) a public trust registered under the Bombay Public Trust Act, 1950, as 

the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare 

the premises of such trust to be of national importance or historical interest;] 
 

(g) "rent" in relation to any public premises, means the consideration payable 

periodically for the authorised occupation of the premises, and includes— 

 

(i) any charge for electricity, water or any other services in connection with 

the occupation of the premises; 

 

(ii) any tax (by whatever name called) payable in respect of the premises, 

where such charge or tax is payable by the State Government or the 

Corporate authority; 

 

(h) "unauthorised occupation" in relation to any public premises, means the 

occupation by any person of the public premises without authority for such 

occupation, and includes the continuance in occupation by any person of the public 

premises after the authority (whether by way of grant or any other mode of transfer) 

under which he was allowed to occupy the premises has expired or has been 

determined for any reason whatsoever. 

 

3. The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,- 

 

(a) appoint such persons, being gazetted officers of Government or officers of 

equivalent rank of the corporate authority, as it thinks fit, to be competent officers for 

the purposes of this Act; and 

 

(b) define the local limits within which, or the categories of public premises in 

respect of which, the competent officers shall exercise the powers conferred, and 

perform the duties imposed, on competent officers by or under this Act. 

 

4. (1) If the competent officer is satisfied- 

 

(a) that the person authorised to occupy any public premises has— 

 

(i) not paid rent lawfully due from him in respect of such premises 

for a period of more than two months, or 

 

(ii) sub-let, without the permission of the State Government or, as 

the case may be,the corporate authority, the whole or any part of 

such premisses, or 

 

(iii) committed, or is committing such acts of waste as are likely to 

diminish materially the value, or impair substantially the utility, of 

the premises, or 

 

(iv) otherwise acted in contravention of any of the terms, express or 

implied, under which he is authorised to occupy such, premises, or 

 

(b) that any person is in unauthorised occupation of any public premises, or 

 

(c) that any public premises are required for any other purpose of the State 

Government, or, as the case may be, the corporate authority to whom such 

premises belong, 

 

III of 1956. 

Bom. 29 of 1950. 

Appointment of 

Competent officers. 

Issue of notice to 

show cause against 

order of eviction. 



the competent officer shall, notwithstanding anything contained in 

any other law for the time being in force issue in the manner hereinafter 

provided a notice in writing calling upon all persons concerned to show 

cause why an order of eviction should not be made. 

 

(2) The notice shall— 

 

(a) specify the grounds on which the order of eviction is proposed to be 

made; and 

 

(b) require all persons concerned, that is to say, all persons who are, or may 

be, in occupation of or claim interest in, the public premises, to show cause, 

if any, against the proposed order on or before such date as may be specified 

in the notice, being a date not earlier than ten days from the date of issue 

thereof. 
 

(3) The competent officer shall cause the notice to be served by post or by having it 

affixed on the outer door or some other conspicuous part of the public premises, and 

in such other manner as may be prescribed, whereupon the notice shall be deemed to 

have been duly given to all persons concerned. 

 

(4) Where the competent officer knows or has reasons to believe that any persons are 

in occupation of the public premises, then, without prejudice to the provisions of sub-

section (3), he shall cause a copy of the notice to be served on every such person by 

post or by delivering or tendering it to that person or in such other manner as may be 

prescribed. 

 

(5) If any person makes an application to the competent officer for extension of the 

period specified in the notice, the competent officer may grant the same on such 

terms as to payment and recovery of the amount claimed in the notice, as it deems fit. 

 

5. (1) If, after considering the cause, if any, shown by any person in pursuance of a 

notice under section 4 and any evidence he may produce in support of the same and 

after giving him a reasonable opportunity of being heard, by himself, or by advocate, 

attorney or pleader, the competent officer is satisfied that any of the reasons specified 

in sub-section (1) of section 4 exists, the competent officer may make an order of 

eviction, for reasons to be recorded therein, directing that the public premises shall be 

vacated, on such date as may be specified in the order, by all persons who may be in 

occupation thereof or any part thereof, and cause a copy of the order to be affixed on 

the outer door or some other conspicuous part of the public premises; and thereupon 

the order shall be deemed to have been duly served on all the persons concerned. 

 

(2) If any person refuses or fails to comply with the order of eviction within thirty 

days of the date of its service under sub-section (1), the competent officer or any 

other officer duly authorised by the competent officer in this behalf may evict that 

person from, and take possession of, the public premises and may for that purpose, 

use such force as may be necessary. 

 

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (2), where a person who has 

been ordered to vacate any public premises for the reasons specified in sub-clause (i) 

or (iv) of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 4 pays to the competent officer the 

rent in arrears or carries out or otherwise complies with the terms contravened by him 

to the satisfaction of the competent officer as the case may be, within one month, of 

the date of service of the notice or such longer time as the competent officer may 

allow, the competent officer shall, in lieu of evicting such person under sub-section 

(2), cancel his order made under sub- section (1) and thereupon such person shall 

hold the premises on the same terms on which he held them immediately before such 

notice was served on him. 

 

Eviction of 

unauthorised 

occupants. 



6. (1) Where any persons have been evicted from any public premises under section 5, 

the competent officer may, after giving fourteen days' notice to the persons from 

whom possession of the public premises has been taken and after publishing the 

notice in at least one newspaper having circulation in the locality, remove, or cause to 

be removed or dispose of by public auction any property remaining on such premises. 

Such notice shall be served in the manner provided for service of notice under sub-

section (3) of section 4. 

 

(2) Where any property is sold under sub-section (1), the sale proceeds thereof shall, 

after deducting the expenses of the sale and the amount if any, due to the State 

Government or the corporate authority on account of arrears of rent or damages or 

costs, be paid to such person or persons as may appear to the competent officer to be 

entitled to the same : 

 

Provided that where the competent officer is unable to decide as to the 

person or persons to whom the balance of the amout is payable or as to the 

apportionment of the same, he may refer such dispute to the civil court of competent 

jurisdiction and the decision of the court thereon shall be final. 
 

 

7. (1) Subject to any rules made by the State Government in this behalf and without 

prejudice to the provisions of section 4, where any person is in arrears of rent payable 

in respect of any public premises, the competent officer may, by issuing a notice to 

him, require that person to pay the same within such time, not less than ten days, and 

in such instalments as may be specified in the notice. 

 

(2) Where any person is, or has at any time been, in unauthorised occupation of any 

public premises, the competent officer may, having regard to such principles of 

assessment of damages as may be prescribed assess the damages on account of the 

use and occupation of such premises and may, by order, require that person to pay 

the damages within such time and in such instalments as may be specified in the 

order. 

 

(3) No order under sub-section (2) shall be made against any person until after the 

issue of a notice in writing to the person calling upon him to show cause within such 

time as may be specified in the notice, why such order should not be made, and until 

his objections, if any, and any evidence he may produce in support of the same, have 

been considered by the competent officer. 

 

(4) The notice under sub-section (1) or (3) shall be served in the manner provided for 

service of notice under sub-section (3) of section 4. 

 

8. A competent officer shall, for the purpose of holding any inquiry under this Act, have the 

same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, when 

trying a suit in respectof the following matters, namely : — 

 

(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on 

oath; 

 

(b) requiring the discovery and production of documents; 

 

(c) any other matter which may be prescribed. 

 

9. (1) An appeal shall lie from every order of the competent officer made in respect of 

any public premises under section 5 or section 7 to an appellate officer who shall be 

the district judge of the district in which the public premises are situate or such other 

judicial officer in that district who has for at least ten years held a Judicial office in 

the State as the district judge may designate in this behalf. 

 

(2) An appeal under sub-section (1) shall be preferred,- 

Disposal of 

property left on 
public premises by 

unauthorised 

occupants. 

Power to require 

payment of rent or 

damages, in respect 

of public premises. 

Power of competent 

officers. 
V of 1908. 

Appeal. 



 

(a) in the case of an appeal from an order under section 5, within fifteen 

days from the date of the service of the order under sub-section (1) of that 

section; and 

 

(b) in the case of an appeal from an order under section 7, within fifteen 

days from the date on which the order is communicated to the appellant : 

 

Provided that the appellate officer may entertain the appeal after 

the expiry of the said period of fifteen days, if he is satisfied that the 

appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the appeal in time. 

 

(3) Where an appeal is preferred from an order of the competent officer, the appellate 

officer may stay the enforcement of that order for such period and on such conditions 

as he deems fit. 

 

(4) Every appeal under this section shall be disposed of by the appellate officer as 

expeditiously as possible. 

 

(5) The costs of any appeal under this section shall be in the discretion of the 

appellate officer. 
 

(6) For the purposes of the principal Judge of the Ahmedabad City Civil Court shall 

be deemed to be the district judge of the district, and the City of Ahmedabad shall be 

deemed to be a district. 

 

10. Save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, every order made by a competent officer 

or appellate officer under this Act shall be final and shall not be called in question in any 

original suit, application or execution proceeding and no injunction shall be granted by any 

court or other authority in respect of any action taken or to be taken in pursuance of any power 

conferred by or under this Act. 

 

11. (1) Any person who obstructs the lawful exercise of any power conferred by or under 

this Act shall, on conviction, be punished with fine which may extend to one 

thousand rupees. 

 

(2) If any person who has been evicted from any public premises under this Act again 

occupies the premises without authority for such occupation, he shall be punishable 

with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine which may 

extend to one thousand rupees, or with both. 

 

(3) Any magistrate convicting a person under sub-section (2) may make an orderfor 

evicting that person summarily and such person shall be liable to such eviction 

without prejudice to any other action that may be taken against him under this Act. 

 

12. If a competent officer has reason to believe that any persons are in unauthorised 

occupation of any public premises or have committed any of the acts specified in clause (a) of 

sub-section (1) of section 4, the competent officer or any other officer authorised by him in 

this behalf may require those persons or any other person to furnish information relating to the 

names and other particulars of the persons in occupation of the public premises and every 

person so required shall be bound to furnish the information in his possession. 

 

13. (1) Where any person against whom any proceeding for the determination of arrears 

of rent or for the assessment of damages is to be or has been taken dies before the 

proceeding is taken or during the pendency thereof, the proceeding may be taken or, 

as the case may be, continued against the heirs or legal representatives of that person. 

 

(2) Any amount due to the State Government or the corporate authority from any 

person whether by way of arrears of rent or damages or costs shall, after the death of 

the person, be payable by his heirs or legal representatives but their liability shall be 

Finality of order. 

Offences and 

penalty. 

Power to obtain 

information. 

Liability of heirs 

and legal 

representatives. 



limited to the extent of the assets of the deceased in their hands. 

 

 

14. If any person refuses or fails to pay the arrears of rent payable under sub-section (1) of 

section 7 or the damages payable under sub-section (2) of that section or the costs awarded to 

the State Government or the corporate authority under sub-section (5) of section 9 or any 

portion of such rent, damages or costs, within the time, if any, specified, therefore in the order 

relating thereto, the competent officer may issue a certificate for the amount due, to the 

Collector who shall proceed to recover the same as an arrear of land revenue. 

 

15. (1) Without prejudice to any other provision of this Act, where any person to whom 

any public premises have been allotted is- 

 

(a) an employee of the state Government or of a corporate authority, or 

 

(b) an employee of a local authority, other than a corporate authority, who 

has executed an agreement as provided in sub-section (2), 

 

and is in arrears of rent payable in respect of such public premises, the 

amount of rent in respect of such premises shall, on a requisition in writing 

made in that behalf by the competent officer be liable to be deducted from 

the salary or wages payable to such person. On receipt of such requisition 

the head of the department or office of the State Government, corporate 

authority, or as the case may be, local authority under whom such person is 

employed, shall deduct from the salary or wages payable to such person the 

amount specified in the requisition, and pay the amount so deducted to the 

competent officer in satisfaction of the amount due as aforesaid. 
 

(2) An employee of a local authority other than a corporate authority, who is allotted 

any public premises may execute an agreement in favour of the State Government, 

or, as the case may be, the corporate authority to whom such premises belong, 

providing that the local authority by or under whom he is employed shall be 

competent to deduct from time to time from the salary or wages payable to him, such 

amount as is specified in the agreement, and to pay the amount so deducted to the 

competent officer in satisfaction of any amount due by him in respect of the public 

premises allotted to him. 

 

16. No court shall have jurisdiction to entertain any suit or proceeding in respect of the 

eviction of any person on the ground that he is in unauthorised occupation of any public 

premises or for any other reason specified in sub-section (1) of section 4, or the recovery of 

the arrears of rent payable under sub-section (1) of section 7 or the damages payable under 

sub-section (2) of that section or the costs awarded to the State Government or the corporate 

authority under sub-section (5) of section 9 or any portion of such rent, damages or costs. 

 

17. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the State Government or the 

corporate authority or the appellate officer or the competent officer in respect of anything 

which is in good faith done or intended to be done in pursuance of this Act or of any rules or 

orders made thereunder. 

 

18. (1) The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette and subject to 

the condition of previous publication, make rules for carrying out the purposes of this 

Act. 

 

(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such 

rules may be made to provide for all or any of the matters, expressly required or 

allowed by this Act to be prescribed by rules. 

 

(3) All rules made under this section shall be laid for not less than thirty days before 

the State Legislature as soon as possible after they are made, and shall be subject to 

rescission by the State Legislature or to such modifications as the State Legislature 

Recovery of rent, 

etc. as an arrear of 

land revenue. 

Rent to be 

recovered by 

deduction from 

salary or wages of 
employee. 

Bar of jurisdiction. 

Protection of action 

taken in good faith. 

Power to make 

rules. 



may make during the session in which they are so laid or the session immediately 

following. 

 

(4) Any rescission or modifications so made by the State Legislature shall be 

published in the Official Gazette and shall thereupon take effect. 

 

19. The Bombay Government Premises (Eviction) Act, 1955 and any other corresponding law 

providing for the eviction of occupants from public premises are hereby repealed: 

 

Provided that anything done or any action taken (including rules or orders made, 

notices issued, evictions ordered or effected, damages assessed, rents or damages or costs 

recovered and proceedings initated) or purported to have been done or taken under the Act or 

law hereby repealed shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding 

provisions of this Act, and shall be deemed to be, and to have always been, as valid and 

effective as if such thing or action was done or taken under the corresponding provisions of 

this Act, as if this Act had been in force when such thing was done or such action was taken. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-------------------------------- 

 

 

Repeal, saving and 

validation. 

Bom. II of 1956. 



 

 

 

 

 

                                                           
1 For Statement of Objects and Reasons, See Gujarat Government Gazette, Extraordinary, Part V, Dated 

the 14th December, 1972, pp. 351 to 352. 
2 This Act was assented to by the President on the 15th June, 1973. 
3 The word “and” was deleted by Guj. 29 of 1981, s. 2(a). 
4 The word“and”added, by Guj. 29 of 1981, s. 2(b). and the same was deleted by Guj. 6 of 2004 s. 2(a). 
5 This sub clause was inserted, by Guj. 29 of 1981, s. 2(c). 
6 This word was added by Guj. 6 of 2004, s. 2(b). 
7 This sub-clause was inserted by Guj. 6 of 2004, s. 2(c).