Land acquisition: Karnataka High Court pulls up BDA for compensation delay
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has held that if compensation is not tendered or paid, it would not satisfy the requirement of payment of compensation, so as to complete the land acquisition proceedings. Further, it has said that such conduct on part of the beneficiary would be tantamount to abandonment of acquisition.
A 70-year-old woman had approached the court seeking to declare the acquisition proceedings by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) with regard to the 26 guntas situated in Devarachikkanahalli village, Begur Hobli, Bengaluru South Taluk, as deemed to have lapsed on various grounds, including failure to tender the compensation.
In the present case, the BDA had issued preliminary notification on August 6, 1988, followed by final notification on November 3, 1990 and had passed the award on August 9, 1994. So far the case of the petitioner is that upon the death of the original owner, the land in question came to be devolved upon his grandson Marappa, but Marappa died on May 9, 1993, leaving behind the petitioner and her children. Petitioner being the wife of Marappa along with her children have succeeded to the estate of deceased Marappa.
The main contention urged by petitioner in support of the relief sought seeking declaration that acquisition proceedings have lapsed is that it was not completed by taking over possession and by paying compensation to the petitioners. In this regard, it is pointed out that though award has been passed way back in the year 1994, so far, admittedly, compensation has not been either paid to the land owners or deposited before the Civil Court.
However, BDA’s advocate supported the action taken by the authority while contending that acquisition has been completed as award has been passed and the amount was kept in RD deposit. He further pointed out that as petitioners were not notified khathedars, it was open for them to approach the BDA and take compensation by showing their title.
He further pointed out that possession has been taken long back, and therefore, it is not open for the petitioners to now seek any relief before this Court.
“Having heard the learned counsel for the parties, I find that admittedly award has been passed as back as on August 9, 1994. So far compensation has neither been paid to the land owners/petitioners nor deposited before the Civil Court. As rightly contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners, there is no legally acceptable material on record to show that possession of the land has been taken,” the HC observed in its order, adding that on the other hand, petitioners have produced RTC extracts for the year 2015-16, which shows that the land was still recorded in the name of the petitioner Huchhamma both in column nos.9 & 12 of the RTC.
In similar circumstances, the High Court on August 10, 2017, has held that if compensation was not tendered or paid, it would not satisfy the requirement of payment of compensation so as to complete the acquisition proceedings and that such conduct on the part of the beneficiary would tantamount to abandonment of acquisition.
“Hence, in the light of the law laid down by the Supreme Court which has been followed by this Court in the order dated August 10, 2017 passed in W.P.No.62545/2016, this petition deserves to be allowed,” the court ordered, adding that the acquisition of the land in question is declared as having been abandoned and consequently lapsed.
