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Govt. of NCT of Delhi v. Narender Kumar

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal No. 8723 of 2016)Decided 31 Aug 2016
Civil Appeal No. 8723 of 2016
Justice Kurian Joseph · Justice C. Nagappan

Background

The Delhi government's Land and Building Department had acquired land from Narender Kumar and others without taking possession or completing compensation in time, and a finding below held the acquisition had lapsed under Section 24(2) of the 2013 Act. The government appealed against that finding.

Decision Breakdown

Following its lead judgment on this recurring issue, Civil Appeal No. 8477 of 2016, the Supreme Court held the point was already decided against the government and dismissed the appeal. It gave the appellant one year to initiate fresh acquisition through a new Section 11 notification, with a direction to return the land if that deadline passed without a fresh notification.

Lesson Learnt

Government acquiring bodies get no special exemption from the 2013 Act's lapse rule: prolonged inaction on possession and compensation carries the same legal consequence for them as for any other authority.

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

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