Prior permission of collector is necessary for transfer of tribal land in favour of non tribal 

2)The Collector evaluates if the transfer is for a bona fide non-agricultural purpose and ensures the tribal owner is not rendered landless.

3)A tribal owner can lease NA land to a non-tribal without formal government approval, but only if the lease does not exceed 5 years.

Only because the land is now non-agricultural and inside a municipal corporation does NOT automatically free tribal land from transfer restrictions to non-tribals.

If the land is tribal occupancy / tribal tenure land, then lease to a non-tribal, and sale/transfer of rights to a non-tribal,may still require statutory permissions under Section 36A, unless the land has been lawfully freed from such restrictions or converted into transferable tenure.  

1. Can a tribal owner lease the land to a non-tribal?

Generally:

Not freely

Section 36A expressly restricts transfer of tribal occupancy land to a non-tribal “by way of sale, gift, exchange, mortgage, lease or otherwise”. A lease is specifically covered.  

Permission required:
1. Lease up to 5 years → Previous sanction of the Collector.

2.Longer lease / development-type arrangement → Collector + previous approval of State Government.  

1) Selling constructed flats to a non-tribal is considered an effective transfer of the land's occupancy rights and requires the prior sanction of the Collector

2) Leasing out individual apartments in the apartment building to non-tribals also requires the previous sanction of the Collector if the lease period exceeds 5 years.

You need to check the NA order /permission for this

The NA permission must have been given subject to certain terms and conditions. So it would depend on those T&C

First, get the land records checked properly — especially the 7/12 extract, NA order, and original tenure conditions. If the land still carries tribal transfer restrictions, apply to the Collector for necessary permission/NOC before leasing the land or selling/leasing apartments to non-tribals. Once the required permissions are granted under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966, and development approvals are in place, such transactions can usually proceed legally and safely.

If the land is of tribal occupancy (originally "Class II" or restricted occupancy), the protection follows the ownership, not just the classification of the land. The strict restrictions under Section 36A of the Maharashtra Land Revenue (MLR) Code, 1966 still apply. Section 36A explicitly prohibits the transfer of tribal land to a non-tribal by way of "sale, gift, exchange, mortgage, lease, or otherwise" without prior official sanction.

For leases up to 5 years, previous sanction of District collector to be obtained and for leases exceeding 5 years, state government previous sanctions to be obtained   As an apartment project usually requires long-term lease/development rights (often 30 to 99 years), you will absolutely need the highest level of State Government approval.

An apartment structure cannot be legally separated from the land it stands on. When you sell an apartment, you are also transferring an "undivided share" of the land underneath it.If a developer builds a building on tribal land without  State Government approval under Section 36A, the sale of those apartments to non-tribals is  invalid. The Collector has the power to declare such transfers void, seize the property, and vest it back to the State Government or the original tribal owner without compensation.

To execute a project or transaction like this legally, you are required to obtain prior approval under section 36A  of M L R 1966, from state government of Maharashtra through district collector to permit permit a non-tribal to acquire leasehold, development, or ownership rights over tribal property.

For selling the apartments by tribal to non tribal, first a joint development agreement with the builder is to be executed, with prior sanction from the State Government of Maharashtra under Section 36A of the MLR Code.

The government's sanction order must explicitly state that “the developer is permitted to construct a residential/commercial complex and sell the units/flats to the general public (non-tribals) to make the project viable.

The ultimate conveyance of the land to a non-tribal CHS will require a final execution clearance from the Collector, based on the original Section 36A state sanction. Without it, the apartment buyers will never get the land transferred to their society's name, destroying the property's resale value.

If the apartments are not being sold, but rather retained by the owner/developer to be leased out, the rules depend entirely on the duration of the lease.

Dear Client,

In Maharashtra, if a tribal owner holds non agricultural land within a municipal corporation area, the tribal restriction law (Section 36A, Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966) still applies: ordinarily, the land cannot be transferred or leased to a non‑tribal without prior permission, but there are exceptions for non‑agricultural use and short term leases with Collector sanction. For a lease to a non‑tribal, if the term does not exceed five years, you can usually get Collector’s permission; for longer leases or outright sale, you generally need both Collector sanction and State Government approval, and if permission is denied the transfer can be declared invalid and the land may vest with the State.

If an apartment is built on such non‑agricultural tribal land, the structure itself can, in practice, be sold or leased to non‑tribals because the restriction on land transfers under Section 36A mainly targets outright sale or long‑term transfer of occupancy, not ordinary owner to non‑tribal flatsales once the building is legally constructed and sanctioned, but the underlying land‑status must itself be valid (i.e., either tribal‑land‑converted‑with‑permission or shown as general‑land after proper procedure). If the tribe‑owner wants to sell the entire plot or long‑term lease it to a non‑tribal builder, strict collector and state permission procedures (application, public notice, 5 km tribal right of first refusal, etc.) must be followed, and without this the sale/lease to a non‑tribal can later be challenged and set aside; therefore, for any large‑scale apartment‑project on tribal‑land, it is essential to get these permissions formally and to document that the land is recognised as open to non‑tribal development before launching sales or long‑term‑leases.

I hope this helps and if you have any further issues do not hesitate to contact us.

Section 36A explicitly prohibits the transfer of tribal land to a non-tribal by way of "sale, gift, exchange, mortgage, lease, or otherwise" without prior official sanction. Lease up to 5 years requires the previous sanction of the District Collector and the for lease exceeding 5 years requires previous sanction of the Collector AND the previous approval of the State Government of Maharashtra.

An apartment built on this land cannot be sold to non tribals unless the master land itself has been legally transferred/freed with state permission. An apartment structure cannot be legally separated from the land it stands on. When you sell an apartment, you are also transferring an "undivided share" of the land underneath it.

If restrictions are removed as per tribal scheme then after collector permission it can be sold