The Madras High Court on Monday allowed a batch of writ petitions pending since 2005 and set aside the acquisition of the petitioners’ lands for construction of Krishnagiri Collectorate by invoking the urgency clause which denies an opportunity of hearing to the landowners.
Justice M. Dhandapani agreed with advocates V. Raghavachari and S. Thanka Sivan, representing the petitioners, that construction of a Collectorate was not a project that would justify the invocation of emergency provision under Section 17(4) of the Land Acquisition Act of 1894.
Pointing out the government had neither taken possession of the petitioners’ lands nor paid compensation to them till date due to the interim orders passed by the court at the time of admitting their petitions, the judge said, it would clearly reveal that there was no urgency in acquisition.
He stated that the government had not filed any petition so far to vacate the interim stay. “In the above backdrop, this court is of the considered view that the project for which the lands were sought to be acquired cannot be said to be of such a grave nature which necessitated invocation of the urgency power under Section 17 (4),” he concluded.
