In Brief
A Scheduled Tribe member (Mangal Singh) exchanged his large agricultural land (2400 sq. metres) for a much smaller plot (56.25 sq. metres) owned by the respondents, without obtaining prior permission from the Assistant Collector as required by law. The Supreme Court held that such exchange is absolutely prohibited under Section 157-B of the U.P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950, which bars all forms of land transfer by Scheduled Tribe members to non-Scheduled Tribe members. The mandatory requirement of prior written permission under Section 161 was also violated. The Court declared the exchange deed void and vested the land in the State, rejecting arguments based on hardship or subsequent approvals, as the legislation protects vulnerable tribal landholders.
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