Bhagwan Singh & Ors. vs Union Of India & Ors.
2015 Latest Caselaw 151 Del

$~44 (Category-I)


         IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

                                          Judgment delivered on: 09.01.2015

W.P.(C) 5558/2014 and CM No.13784/2014

BHAGWAN SINGH & ORS.                                        ..... Petitioners



                           versus



UNION OF INDIA & ORS.                                ..... Respondents


Advocates who appeared in this case:
For the Petitioners : Mr S.S.Khatri, Advocate
For the Respondents : Mr Sanjay Kumar Pathak, Advocate



CORAM:
HON'BLE MR JUSTICE BADAR DURREZ AHMED
HON'BLE MR JUSTICE SANJEEV SACHDEVA

                              JUDGMENT

BADAR DURREZ AHMED, J (ORAL)

1. By way of this writ petition the petitioners are seeking the benefit of

section 24(2) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land

Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (hereinafter referred

to as 'the 2013 Act') which came into effect on 01.01.2014. The petitioners,

consequently, seek a declaration that the acquisition proceeding initiated

under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as 'the 1894

Act') and in respect of which Award No.202/86-87 dated 19.09.1986 was

made, inter alia, in respect of the petitioners' land comprised in Khasra No.

509 measuring 15 Bighas 9 Biswa in Village Mamurpur shall be deemed to

have lapsed.

2. It is an admitted position that neither physical possession of the

subject lands has been taken by the land acquiring agency, nor has any

compensation been paid to the petitioners. The award was made more than

five years prior to the commencement of the 2013 Act. All the ingredients of

section 24(2) of the 2013 Act as interpreted by the Supreme Court and this

Court in the following decisions stand satisfied:-

(i) Pune Municipal Corporation and Anr v.

Harakchand Misirimal Solanki and Ors: (2014) 3 SCC 183;

(ii) Union of India and Ors v. Shiv Raj and Ors:

(2014) 6 SCC 564;

(iii) Sree Balaji Nagar Residential Association v. State of Tamil Nadu and Ors: Civil Appeal No. 8700/2013 decided on 10.09.2014;

(iv) Surinder Singh vs. Union of India and Ors.:

W.P.(C) 2294/2014 decided 12.09.2014 by this Court.

3. As a result the petitioners are entitled to a declaration that the said

acquisition proceedings initiated under the 1894 Act in respect of the subject

lands are deemed to have lapsed. It is so declared.

4. The writ petition is allowed to the aforesaid extent. There shall be no

order as to costs.

BADAR DURREZ AHMED, J

SANJEEV SACHDEVA, J JANUARY 09, 2015 SV