JUDGMENT :

K. VINOD CHANDRAN, J.

1. The State impugn the order of the Forest Tribunal which absolve the scheduled property from vesting under the Kerala Forest (Vesting and Management of Ecologically Fragile Land) Act, 2003 (for brevity, the EFL Act). The O.P. (FT) seeks compensation, by way of damages, for the period the petitioner was divested of the beneficial enjoyment of the B scheduled property; illegally, under one pretext or other. The Tribunal found that there was earlier a notification under the Kerala Private Forest (Vesting and Assignment) Act, 1971 (for brevity, the Assignment Act) with respect to larger extent of lands within which was comprised the very same land. The subject land, with an additional ten acres, together and more fully described as A schedule in the application, was absolved from vesting under the Assignment Act by the Forest Tribunal, which was confirmed in appeal by this Court. By virtue of the said declaration and the dictum in State of Kerala vs. Kumari Verma, 2011 (1) KHC 502 there cannot be any subsequent vesting under the EFL Act, especially since the owners/applicants were not permitted to put the land to beneficial use. From the various proceed