ADVERSE POSSESSION

• The concept of adverse possession stems from the idea that land must not be left vacant but instead, be put to judicious use
• Essentially, adverse possession refers to the hostile possession of property, which must be “continuous, uninterrupted, and peaceful.”
• According to the Law Commission’s report, the rationale behind this comes from considerations that the “title to land should not long be in doubt”, “society will benefit from someone making use of land the owner leaves idle,” and “persons who come to regard the occupant as owner may be protected.”
• The maxim that the law does not help those who sleep over their rights is invoked in support of adverse possession
• While the concept originally dates back to 2000 BC, finding its roots in the Hammurabi Code, the historical basis of “title by adverse possession” is the development of the statutes of limitation on actions for recovery of land in England
• The first such statute was the Statute of Westminster, 1275. However, it was the Property Limitation Act, 1874, that set the period of limitation at twelve years from when the cause of action first arose, which laid the groundwork for the limitations model inherited by colonial India
• The first attempt to bring the law of limitation to domestic shores was the “Act XIV of 1859”, which regulated the limitation of civil suits in British India
• After the passage of the Limitation Act in 1963, the law on adverse possession underwent significant changes

• The 1963 Act fortified the position of the true owner of the land, as he now had to merely prove his title, while the burden of proof of adverse possession shifted to the person claiming it
• Under the Limitation Act, 1963, any person in possession of private land for over 12 years or government land for over 30 years can become the owner of that property, as laid down in Articles 64, 65, 111, or 112 of the 1963 Act, relating to suits for possession of immovable property
• According to Article 65 of Schedule I of the 1963 Act, a person in adverse possession of immovable property acquires title to that property
• However, the possession must be open, continuous, and “in defiance of the title of the real owner for twelve years.” Similarly, Article 64 governs suits for possession based on previous possession and not on title
• Meanwhile, Article 112, which applies to government property, mandates a requirement of 30 years for granting a title by adverse position
• Further, Article 111 says that the limitation period for the State will be 30 years from the date of dispossession for land belonging to a private person where any public street or road or any part of it has been dispossessed and no suit has been moved for its possession “by or on behalf of any local authority”