India, June 17 -- We do not find any plausible reason as to why the Committee ought not to have made an assessment of the forest rights of the forest dwellers, without taking into account the object and scope behind the Act." With these words, the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court, on April 9, set aside a decision of Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri District Level Committee (DLC). In 2021, the DLC had rejected Tharu tribal community's claims over forest resources of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve.

The Act referred to in the judgement is the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 or FRA, which guarantees forest dwellers rights over forest resources. Under FRA, tribal populations can claim ...