Allahabad HC begins daily hearing of Noida land acquisition cases

The court is hearing well over 500 petitions pertaining to more than 30 villages in Noida and Greater Noida,which have been acquired using the urgency clause. The petitioners have alleged that the government acquired the land through the unjust use of an urgency clause,and then gave away the acquired property to private developers by changing the land use.

The court also agreed to the petitioners’ suggestion that the cases may be taken up village-wise and notification-wise. “After the conclusion of arguments and counter-arguments,along with rejoinders,the interveners for that particular village or notification will be heard,” the court said.

Several private builders had sought becoming a party in these petitions,but the court rejected the same and allowed them to put their point as interveners.

The three-judge bench was constituted after two different benches of the same High Court gave contradictory judgements on acquisition of land in Patwari village using the urgency clause. While a 2008 decision had upheld land acquisition in Patwari,a decision in July this year had quashed the same.

The three-judge-bench — comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan,S U Khan and V K Shukla — said while hearing the petition pertaining to Patwari village: “The petitioners may file specific affidavits in each writ petition regarding payment of compensation,date of compensation,date of receiving compensation,payment of additional compensation (if any) and other details regarding compensation. The affidavit…titled ‘affidavit regarding compensation’ to facilitate the respondents to file reply to the said affidavit and bring all relevant/essential facts regarding compensation on record.”

“The court has asked that everything related to the case be brought on record by the petitioners and the respondents,” said Pankaj Dubey,counsel for the Patwari villagers. He refused to elaborate more on the proceedings,stating that the hearing was still on.

The main argument of the petitioners centred around the unjust use of the urgency clause,giving away the land to private developers and changing the land use from industrial and to residential.

The counsel for the state,led by L Nageshwar Rao,along with counsel for Noida Authority P S Patwalia and the chief standing counsel M C Chaturvedi,maintained that the Authority had proceeded as per the Master Plan,and areas marked for commercial use were being used for the same purpose.

During the day-long hearing,the court posed various queries to the petitioners and respondents,asking whether it was compulsory for the government to acquire land before it was sold off to private developers. The hearing will continue on Tuesday.