# Jharkhand HC: Land restoration must start within reasonable time 2026-08-08T10:06:26+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Jharkhand High Court has ruled that restoration proceedings under Section 71A of the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act must be initiated within a reasonable time, even though the law sets no time limit. A single judge, Justice Sanjay Kumar Dwivedi, also held that once a restoration order becomes final, it cannot be reopened in later proceedings. The court set aside orders by the Additional Collector and Divisional Commissioner that had reopened a 1988 restoration order concerning 1.32 acres in Ranchi. Amar Kumar Choudhary, the petitioner, had complied with the 1988 order by transferring land. Citing Supreme Court rulings, the court said a delay of around 30 years is the outer reasonable limit and that res judicata applies. ## Coverage - livelaw.in Tags: Chotanagpur Tenancy Act, Jharkhand High Court, land restoration, limitation period, res judicata Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/jharkhand-hc-land-restoration-must-start-within-reasonable-time/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/jharkhand-hc-land-restoration-must-start-within-reasonable-time/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.