Owing to protests from residents, a businessman in Vasna area of Vadodara, Gujarat, was forced to cancel his plan to sell his house to a Muslim buyer.

According to the members of Samarpan Society, the area falls under the Disturbed Areas Act, which prevents the sale of a property to a Muslim in a Hindu-dominated area and vice versa, unless each immediate neighbour of the said property approves the deal.

The residents were also concerned that the sale of properties to members of the minority community could also result in a fall in property prices in the area.

Samarpan Society was declared as a ‘Disturbed Area’ in 2014. As per Gujarat Prohibition of Transfer of Immovable Property and Provision for Protection of Tenants from Eviction from Premises in Disturbed Areas Act,1991(or Disturbed Areas Act in short), any transfer of immovable properties in the society requires the society president’s No-Objection Certification and the Collector’s sanction.

According to The Times Of India, On Sunday, around 80 to 90 residents of the society gathered at the common plot to give the owner – Mahesh Palani, a letter of objection. Police were also present to carry out law and order.

Palani had submitted an application for police verification for the sale of his property. However, once the residents learnt about the sale, they protested and even opposed to showing the property to members of the minority community. In the end, the owner had to cancel the deal.

“The buyer had come through a very close friend. Since the reference person is very reliable, I did not mind showing him the property. The party was also willing to pay adequately. I had told him that the sale might not come through because of the Disturbed Areas Act. I submitted an application in the police station for verification to proceed further but I will withdraw it today,” Palani was quoted by The Indian Express.

At present, the society has 170 houses of which two were sold to Muslims in 2017 and one leased out for 99 years. According to the residents of the society, these sales came to their notice only after the houses were sold. Since then, the members have been objecting to such sales.

“We have observed that when the number of occupants from minority communities increase in the society, members of the Hindu community tend to move out. We do not have an issue with any person or any community. Our major concern is that there is a reason why certain areas fall under Disturbed Areas and any violation of the rules lead to declining property rates, which affect the entire society,” Bikramjeet Singh, General Secretary of the society, was quoted by the media.

Earlier in September, a similar protest had occurred in the same area at Kesarbaug Society when businesswoman Geeta Goradia tried to sell her property to businessman and educationist Faizal Faslani. The sale had to be cancelled due to the protests.

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