Section 84. Order of priority for leasing out surplus lands

Where any surplus land is to be leased, it shall be leased to persons in the following order of priority :-

(i) a person from whom any land held by him as tenant has been resumed by the landlord under section 9 of the Berar Regulation of Agricultural Leases Act, 1951 (M. P. Act XXIV of 1951) or under ¹[section 38 or 39] of this Act and as a consequence thereof whose total holding whether as tenure-holder or tenant or partly as tenure-holder and partly as tenant has been reduced to an area less than one family holding;

(ii) Co-operative farming society, the members of which are agricultural labourers, landless persons or small holders or a combination of such persons;

(iii) agricultural labourers;

(iv) landless persons;

(v) small holders;

(vi) co-operative farming society of agriculturists (other than small holders) who hold either as tenure-holder or tenant or partly as tenure-holder and partly as tenant land less in area than a family holding and who are artisans;

(vii) an agriculturist (other than a small holder) who holds either as tenure-holder or tenant or partly as tenure-holder and partly as tenant land less in area than a family holding and who is an artisan;

(viii) any other co-operative farming society;

(ix) any agriculturist who holds either as tenure-holder or as tenant or partly as tenure-holder and partly as tenant land larger in area than a family holding but less in area than three family holdings;

(x) any person, not being an agriculturist who intends to take to the profession of agriculture.