Section 4(1) in The Maharashtra Tribal Economic Condition (Improvement) Act, 1976
(1)Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force or any contract or other instrument having force by virtue of any such law, any lending, whether in cash or kind, for any purpose whatsoever, either without any security or on the security of any property, made by any person to a Tribal before the appointed date, shall be deemed to be invalid and void ab-initio, and thereupon the provisions of the Maharashtra Debt Relief Act, 1975, (Mah. III of 1975) shall apply to such invalid and void debts as they apply in relation to debts which are deemed to be wholly discharged under that Act.Explanation - For the purposes of this sub-section, "a Tribal" means a Tribal who is either a marginal farmer, a rural artisan or a rural labourer, and who is not an assessee under the Income tax Act, 1961 (XLIII of 1961), on the appointed date or who on the appointed date holds land not more than 9 hectares of un-irrigated land or 3 hectares of perennially irrigated land. Where a Tribal holds un-irrigated land as well as perennially irrigated land, one hectare of perennially irrigated land shall be considered as equivalent to three hectares of un-irrigated land and vice versa.
