CASE TITLE: Prantesh Narayan Bajpeyi v. State Of Up And 4 Others [WPIL No. – 1889 of 2023]
DECIDED ON: 21.08.2023
CORAM: Hon’ble Pritinker Diwaker,Chief Justice Hon’ble Ashutosh Srivastava,J.
INTRODUCTION
On Monday, the Allahabad High Court addressed a public interest litigation concerning the lack of action from the Kanpur Development Authority regarding the land that was acquired through a notification in 1996 for the purpose of establishing the “New Kanpur City” and a residential colony under the development authority.
A total land area of 464.6965 hectares was intended for acquisition from seven villages based on the notification issued on August 9, 1996, for the creation of the “New Kanpur City”. This acquisition was contested by several individuals before the Allahabad High Court, which subsequently invalidated the notifications in 1999.
FACTS
Subsequently, the Supreme Court, in the context of Special Leave Petitions, upheld the validity of the notifications issued under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1984. However, it invalidated certain aspects of the Section 6 notifications, directing the need for a fresh evaluation under Section 5A. During the ongoing Special Leave Petition proceedings, multiple requests were made to the Kanpur Development Authority to allocate funds for compensating landowners.
As a result, new declarations under Section 6 of the Act were issued in 2005. The designation of the project changed from “New Kanpur City” to “Residential Colony of Kanpur Development Authority.” These declarations faced legal challenges in the High Court, leading to the annulment of notifications associated with filed petitions. Subsequently, fresh notifications were put forth.
The petitioner presented various records of Authority board meetings to establish that it had been consistently conveyed that the project had lost its effectiveness. Furthermore, the petitioner argued that private individuals had already constructed on their lands and were living peacefully. The Authority’s actions under the guise of the scheme were allegedly infringing upon Article 300A of the Indian Constitution by disturbing the peaceful possession of land.
The petitioner’s counsel asserted that there was a status-quo order in effect during the proceedings in both the High Court and the Apex Court. The scheme initially aimed to acquire land from seven villages for the “New Kanpur City,” but this was purportedly and arbitrarily modified to the “Residential Colony of Kanpur Development Authority.” Allegations are made that the possession of 111.8468 hectares of land, out of the total 464.6965 hectares, was taken unlawfully.
There are concerns about the remaining land, currently in private possession and already built upon, not under the control of the Kanpur Development Authority. Additionally, it was conveyed that the State Government declined the proposal from the Kanpur Development Authority for advancing both the “New Kanpur City” project and the establishment of a residential colony.
While the Kanpur Development Authority acknowledged holding 111.8468 hectares of land, the counsel indicated that due to the scattered nature of the land in their possession, negotiations with the landholders were underway to make the scheme more viable.
CASE ANALYSIS AND DECISION
Ordering the involved parties to uphold the current situation, the bench composed of Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker and Justice Ashutosh Srivastava remarked,
“In light of the arguments presented by the learned Senior Counsel representing the Petitioner, and recognizing that the Respondent Development Authority possesses only a portion of the land and the feasibility of the proposed ‘New Kanpur City’ scheme is currently uncertain, it is decreed that the parties shall maintain the existing status-quo. However, the Kanpur Development Authority is permitted to engage in negotiations with the tenure holders.”
The case has been scheduled for hearing on October 16, 2023.
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Written by- Mansi Malpani
