Section 4 in The Orissa Communal Forest and Private Lands (Prohibition of Alienation) Act, 1948
4. Transactions of the nature specified in Section 3 to be void.
(1)Any of transactions of the nature prohibited by Section 3 which took place on or after the 1st day of April, 1946, shall be void and inoperative and shall not confer or take away or be deemed to have conferred or taken away any right whatever on or from any party to the transaction :Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall be deemed to invalidate-(i)any such transaction in respect of private land or forest land entered into prior to the 30th day of November, 1947, in favour of any religious, charitable or educational institution or of any hospital or of any local authority or Co-operative Society registered either under the Madras Co-operative Societies Act, 1932 (Madras Act VI of 1932) or the Bihar and Orissa Co-operative Societies Act, 1935, (B. and O. Act VI of 1935) as the case may be, or of any other public body or institution;(ii)any such transaction in respect of private land or forest land entered into prior to the 30th day of November, 1947, in favour of any person in good faith and for valuable consideration.(2)If any dispute arises as to the validity of the claim of any person to any land under Clauses (i) and (ii) of the proviso to Sub-section (1), it shall be open to such person to apply to the District Judge of the district in which the land is situated for a decision as to the validity of such claim.(3)The District Judge to whom an application is made under Subsection (2) shall, after giving notice to all the persons concerned in the transaction or interested in the land and also where the application is not made by the State Government to the State Government, decide whether the claim to the land is valid or not, and his decision shall be final and not subject to appeal or revision in any superior Court.(4)The State Government may, by notification, make rules for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this section and in particular as to the fees to be paid in respect of the applications referred to in Subsection (3) and the procedure to be followed by the District Judge.Explanation - In Sub-sections (2), (3) and (4) the expression "District Judge" shall include an "Additional District Judge" in respect of those cases that may be transferred to him for disposal.
