Real Estate: What is adverse possession?

Adverse possession happens when the real owner of a property (House or Land) loses her/his ownership rights owing to inaction on her/his part to “remove” a trespasser within a statutory period from her/his property.

After the period for eviction lapses, the real owner is barred from initiating any legal proceeding to claim her property and the “trespasser” acquires title to that property through adverse possession.

The period is 12 years in case of private property  and 30 years in case of government / state / public property from the point “when the possession of the defendants becomes adverse to the plaintiff”.

In a case (Karnataka Board of Wakf verses Government of India), the Supreme Court said, “In the eye of law, an owner would be deemed to be in possession of a property so long as there is no intrusion. Non-use of the property by the owner even for a long time would affect his/her title.

But, the position will be altered when another person takes possession of the property and asserts rights over it and the person having title omits or neglects to take legal action against such person for years.”

Necessary conditions..!

 

The essential requisites to establish adverse possession are that it should not have been done by force, stealth or / under authorized permission (lease or / rent) of the owner.

The rationale is broadly that the title should not be in doubt for long, and the society will benefit from someone else making use of the land or the house.

Adverse possession can be proven in these circumstances:

Actual possession..!

If the person has actually been staying in the house or / on the land with the intent of keeping it. Physical acts such as construction, repairs, planting and harvesting crops and so on, must show that the possessor is exercising dominion over the property.

Open possession..!

One must possess the land or house openly, and not secretly, as a true owner would. Secretly occupying another’s property does not give the occupant any legal rights.

Moreover, the owner must have actual knowledge of the adverse use, or / the public should know about it.

Exclusive use..!

Adverse possession will not mature into a title unless the claimant has had sole occupancy of the property. Hostile possession: This means that the claimant has knowingly occupied the property in opposition to the true owner’s rights, for the stipulated period (12 or / 30 years), and with the intention of acquiring the title.

From Mint

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