Dehradun, Nov. 12 -- In a significant order in the long-running tea garden land dispute in Dehradun, the Uttarakhand High Court has prohibited the sale, transfer and any private transaction involving 29.1784 hectares of land declared surplus under land ceiling proceedings in five villages of the district. The court has also directed the concerned Sub-Registrar not to register any sale deed or transfer document related to the land.

The order was issued while hearing a public interest litigation filed by advocate and RTI activist Vikesh Singh Negi, who had challenged the legality of transactions involving tea garden land and raised questions regarding the status of land declared surplus under the ceiling law. The case has remained in focus...