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Delhi Development Authority v. Lajinder Singh & Ors.

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal No. 12248 of 2016)Decided 16 Dec 2016
Civil Appeal No. 12248 of 2016
Justice Kurian Joseph · Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman

Background

DDA had initiated land acquisition proceedings against the respondents' land, but the respondents contended that the acquisition had lapsed because DDA failed to take possession of, or pay compensation for, the land within the time limits set by Section 24(2) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. DDA appealed to the Supreme Court after losing on this point.

Decision Breakdown

The Court noted that the identical legal issue had already been decided against DDA in two earlier Supreme Court judgments, and on that basis dismissed both appeals without re-examining the question. However, taking account of the specific facts, it gave DDA one year to start fresh acquisition proceedings under Section 24(2) of the 2013 Act; if DDA failed to issue a fresh notification within that year, it was directed to hand back physical possession of the land to the owners.

Lesson Learnt

Under the 2013 land acquisition law, an acquiring authority that lets an old acquisition lapse by not taking possession or paying compensation in time does not get to keep the land indefinitely: it must either restart the acquisition process within the window the Court allows, or return the land to its owner.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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