Allahabad High Court directs to maintain status quo on matter related to land acquisition to set up New Kanpur City

The Allahabad High Court has directed to maintain status quo on the matter of land acquisition for the purposes of setting up “New Kanpur City”, of the Kanpur Development Authority.

The Division Bench of Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker and Justice Ashutosh Srivastava passed this order while hearing a PIL filed by Prantesh Narayan Bajpai.

The writ (PIL) expauses a general cause wherein the respondent/Kanpur Development Authority in gross derogation of Article 300A of the Constitution of India as also Public Policy is continuing to have claim over land which was the subject matter of acquisition for the purposes of setting up “New Kanpur City”, which acquisition was quashed by a co-ordinate Bench decision of the Court dated 26.9.2006.

The Special Leave Petition filed against the order dated 26.9.2006 was dismissed vide order dated 10.01.2008.

It is submitted by Anoop Trivedi, Senior Counsel for the petitioner that there was a status-quo order operating during the proceedings pending before the High Court and the Apex Court.

He further submitted that a total of 464.6965 hectare of land contained in 7 villages was sought to be acquired for the scheme of ‘New Kanpur City’ subsequently changed to ‘Residential Colony of Kanpur Development Authority’ and possession was illegally taken in respect of an area of 111.8468 hectare of land.

Senior Counsel also submitted that the remaining land is in possession of the private persons and is not in possession of the Kanpur Development Authority and such private persons have raised constructions thereon and in any case, the project, as conceived by the Development Authority, cannot be given effect to.

Senior Counsel said that the State Government itself has rejected the proposal of the Kanpur Development Authority for proceedings with the scheme for creation of New Kanpur City or for setting up residential colonies for Kanpur Development Authority.

Arun Kumar, counsel for the Development Authority submitted that the Development Authority is in possession of an area 111.8468 hectare of land out of total area of 464.6965 hectare sought to be acquired and the same lies scattered and the Development Authority is carrying on negotiations with the tenure holders to make the Scheme viable to a large extent. He, however, concedes that the object for which the acquisition proceedings were undertaken cannot be achieved.

The Court observed that the matter requires consideration.

The Court granted four weeks time to file counter affidavit counsel for the Kanpur Development Authority and two weeks time to file rejoinder affidavit.

“Considering the submissions advanced by the Senior Counsel for the Petitioner and also taking note of the fact that the Respondent Development Authority is only in possession of part of the land and the scheme for proposed ‘New Kanpur City’ as of now is not viable, it is provided that parties shall maintain status-quo as it exists today. However, it shall be open for the Kanpur Development Authority to proceed with the negotiations with the tenure holders”, the order reads.

The Court has fixed the next hearing of the petition on 16 October, 2023.