The Rajasthan High Court has reiterated that when this fact remains undisputed that neither the possession has been taken nor any monetary compensation has been paid / deposited to the petitioner, the impugned acquisition proceedings qua the petitioner stands lapsed.
A single-judge bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand allowed a Petition filed seeking direction that the land acquisition proceedings in respect to petitioner land under the award of 1998 may kindly be declared to have lapsed.
The counsel for the petitioner submits that the land of the petitioner and other Khatedars was acquired by the respondents by issuing notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 , thereafter notice under Section 6 under the Act of 1894 was issued by the respondents in 1997 inviting applications from the objectors and finally, the award was passed by the Land Acquisition Officer in 1998 determining the amount of the compensation.
The Counsel submits that in spite of passing of considerable time, till date neither possession of the land in question has been taken nor any amount of compensation has been paid to the petitioner, hence, in view of the provisions contained under Section 24 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 the land acquisition proceedings have lapsed. Counsel submits that the controversy involved in this petition has already been set at rest by the Constitutional Bench of the Apex court in the case of Indore Development Authorities vs Manohar Lal and Ors. reported in 2020 8 SCC 129.
There is admission made by the Respondent of their reply, which reads as under:-
“7 That although as per record available in the office of the Respondents neither possession of the land in question has been taken over by the land Acquisition Officer and handed over to the representative of the Urban Improvement Trust, Alwar nor amount of monetary compensation as per as award dated 25.06.1998 has been paid to the petitioner or deposited along with reference application before the competent court nor developed land has been allotted in favour of the petitioner in lieu of monetary compensation, but in the aforesaid facts and circumstances the petitioner is not entitled to get any relief as prayed by her in the writ petition. The present writ petition is not maintainable on any ground.”
When this fact remains undisputed that neither the possession has been taken nor any monetary compensation has been paid / deposited to the petitioner, the impugned acquisition proceedings qua the petitioner stands lapsed, in the light of the observations and directions issued by the Apex Court in the judgment passed by the Constitutional Bench passed of Apex Court in the case of Indore Development Authority (supra) which reads as under:-
“366.8. The provisions of Section 24(2) providing for a deemed lapse of proceedings are applicable in case authorities have failed due to their inaction to take possession and pay compensation for five years or more before the 2013 Act came into force, in a proceeding for land acquisition pending with the authority concerned as on 1.1.2014. The period of subsistence of interim orders passed by court has to be excluded in the computation of five years.”
In view of the above admitted factual aspects of the matter and in the light of the judgment of the Constitutional Bench of Supreme Court in the case of Indore Development Authority (supra), the petition stands allowed by the High Court.