Land Reform Ordinance 1984 and Rights of Sharecroppers

[Noor E Alam]

In the Land Reform Ordinance 1984, legal recognition of the rights of share-croppers is given for the first time and share-cropping is established as the only admissible form of tenancy contract; but the ordinance has not been implemented.

Recognizing the rights of sharecroppers, the ordinance mentioned the issues:

Limitation on acquisition of agricultural land as 60 bigha;
No benami transaction;
No eviction, etc, from homestead;
Settlement of khas land for homestead;
Cultivation under barga contract
Recognition of existing bargadars
Cultivation of barga land after bargadar's death;
Termination of barga contract;
Division of produce of barga land;
Bargadar's right to purchase;
Ceiling of barga land; and
Restriction of cultivation
In the section 8 and 9 of the ordinance, it recognized the rights of sharecropper as:

"Subject to the other provisions of this Ordinance, no person shall allow another person to cultivate his land and no person shall cultivate the land of another person on condition of sharing the produce of such land between them unless they execute a contract for such cultivation in such form and manner as may be prescribed."

"A barga contract shall be valid for a period of five years commencing from such date as may be specified in the barga contract."

Any person cultivating the land of another person as a bargadar immediately before the commencement of this Ordinance shall be deemed to be a bargadar in respect of such land under this Ordinance.

The owner and the bargadar of any land referred to in sub-section (1) shall execute a contract as required under section 8 within ninety days from the date of commencement of this Ordinance.

About the Division of produce of barga land, it mentioned clearly (section 12)

The produce of any barga land shall be divided in the following manner, namely:-
(a) one-third shall be received by the owner for the land;
(b) one third shall be received by bargadar for the labour;
(c) one-third shall be received by the owner or the bargadar or by both in proportion to the cost of cultivation, other than the cost of labour, borne by them.

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