Panaji: The Goa government today enacted a new registration act making it utmost difficult for foreigners to buy lands in the state.

State Law Minister Dayanand Narvekar, presenting the new legislation in the House, said the government has taken a policy decision to "ban foreigners from buying properties in the state".

Goa has recently witnessed unprecedented rush by foreigners to buy lands, reportedly, violating stringent Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

The state government which has come heavily on such violations, today amended 100-year-old Indian Registration Act enacting a new law for the state named Goa Registration Act.

The ongoing state legislative assembly passed the law with state government expressing its willingness to take back lands that are found to be illegally purchased by foreigners.

"We can even acquire these properties which were sold illegally to foreigners," Law Minister Dayanand Narvekar told the state legislative assembly presenting the law.

He said that no registration authorities will be allowed to register the sale deeds of such lands sold to foreigners.

"We will hold the sub registrar responsible for such an action," the minister said.

In his brief speech, Narvekar said that it will be impossible for foreigners to buy land henceforth unless they get all clearances.

Most of these people (foreigners) come on tourist visa and not on business visa, the Law Minister pointed out. He said that Goa needs to protect land for posterity.

Earlier last week, the Law Minister expressing his intention to pass the legislation had said that there were no proper power (given) to the registration authorities in Goa to check whether the Reserve Bank of India had cleared a deal.

The powers are now enforced with the new legislation which is carved out from liberty given in Section 22 of The Registration Act, 1908. It empowers the state government to ban the sale of land as part of public policy.

The sale of land to the foreigners had become a contentious issue in Goa with state government unearthing 400-odd cases of sale of agricultural property to foreigners.

The state government had constituted a committee, which studied all the proposals threadbare and referred 298 cases to the Union Enforcement Directorate for further action.

Officials here said that these cases had clear evidence of foreigners buying properties in Goa in violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (Fema).

Source : PTI