After 14-yr battle, homebuyers relieved as HC dismisses farmers’ plea against Yeida
arnab mukherjee
After 14-yr battle, homebuyers relieved as HC dismisses farmers’ plea against Yeida
In a significant relief to homebuyers and business people who were unable to take possession of their respective plots in new sectors of the Yamuna Expressway, the Allahabad high court on Thursday dismissed the petitions of farmers, who claimed that Yeida had forcefully acquired their land for developmental purposes.
The move will assist Yeida in acquiring land, developing infrastructure, and providing possession to thousands of property buyers suffering for the past 14 years. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)
The farmers had filed writs to halt the land acquisition by Yeida (Yamuna Expressway industrial development authority) because the “urgency clause” was used to acquire agriculture land in 2009 and 2012 forcefully, but the court had not granted them any relief.
Yeida said on Friday that the high court’s refusal to quash the land acquisition would significantly benefit property buyers and allow the staff to complete the unfinished infrastructure projects in dozens of sectors.
“The high court order will help us resolve land disputes, complete stalled projects, and provide possession to at least 5,500 plot owners affected by legal wranglings. We will now pay the compensation and distribute the plots to the farmers following the court order, paving the way for the completion of the incomplete road, park, sewer, drain, and other works,” said Arun Vir Singh, chief executive officer of Yeida on Friday.
The move will assist Yeida in acquiring land, developing infrastructure, and providing possession to thousands of property buyers suffering for the past 14 years.
Approximately 100 farmers in 2009 filed 25 writs from nine villages, including Kadalpur, Rustampur, Dungarpur, and Rampur Bangar, among others. On June 1, 2023, the Allahabad high court reserved the order, which was officially released on June 1, 2023. For a decade, approximately 20% of the land in these nine villages was under litigation, affecting development work and the interests of those who had purchased plots in government schemes.
“Subject to the above observations and directions, we dismiss all the writ petitions in this bunch while rejecting the challenge to the acquisition notification under sections 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, read with sections 17 (1) and 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894,” said the order of bench justices Vipin Chandra Dixit and Sunita Agarwal.
The court also said that regardless of whether these farmers challenged the land acquisition, they are entitled to higher 64% land compensation and 7% of total land acquired as residential plots.
Due to the 14-year land dispute over patches of land, many basic civic works such as parks, roads, water supply, and others were disrupted, causing problems for property buyers. According to officials, the problems will be resolved in sectors 17, 18, 20, 22D, and 22E, among others.
“For 14 years, we have been waiting for basic services in Sector 18. Unfortunately, many people could not take possession of their plots due to a court dispute. We hope the issues are now resolved,” said plot owner Varun Kumar.
Meanwhile, farmers said Yeida should distribute the land compensation and plots as soon as possible. “We hope that Yeida will grant us the increased 64% land compensation as well as the 7% residential plots as soon as possible,” said Mukesh Singh, a farmer from Rustampur village.
Nagin Chand
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YEIDA (Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Area)
HC junks farmers’ petition against land acquisition off Yamuna ewayAditya Dev / TNN / Updated: Jun 3, 2023, 09:49 ISTHC junks farmers’ petition against land acquisition off Yamuna eway
Allahabad high court
NOIDA: The Allahabad high court has dismissed a bunch of over 70 writ petitions filed by farmers of nine villages who had challenged a decision by the state government to acquire their plots using an emergency clause of the Land Acquisition Act between 2009 and 2011.
The May 26 order by Justices Sunita Agarwal and Vipin Chandra Dixit has paved the way for development work in litigated areas off the Yamuna Expressway. Around 5,500 allottees are expected to be handed plots now, mainly in the residential and institutional categories.
Arun Vir Singh, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority CEO, said the litigation had held up development work in several sectors, such as 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 22. Handing over of plots and the construction of roads and other basic amenities were hit too. “There is another bunch of writ petitions from 11 villages, whose hearings are on. The next date of hearing is in July,” Singh added.
A total of 1,783 hectares were acquired by YEIDA in the nine villages – Usmanpur, Dhanori, Kadarpur, Rustampur, Doongarpur Reelka, Raunija, Rampur Bangar, Pachokra and Accheja Bujurg. Of the total land acquired, 332 hectares were under litigation.
“It cannot be accepted that the entire exercise for invocation of urgency clause was mechanical or there was no material for recording subjective satisfaction of the State. It cannot be said that it was an exercise which was conducted without application of mind. Having gone through the record and noticing the statement in the counter affidavit of the state, looking to the master plan and the area of land acquired under the notifications in question, there remains no doubt that the state government had duly applied its mind to relevant factors available on the record before it, to reach at the conclusion of the dispensation of enquiry under Section 5A,” the order read.The court agreed that the government had “applied its mind” while acquiring the land under the emergency clause.
The government submitted in court various reasons for acquiring the plots under the emergency clause. They included an integrated plan for development, enormousness of the project, the need for contiguous land and the possibility of encroachment, among others.
The farmers had termed the acquisition process arbitrary and illegal and filed writ petitions in the high court, seeking quashing of the acquisition notifications under the urgency clause. They said the government had no ground to show an unforeseen urgency to invoke the urgency clause and deny the rights of the landholders to file objections.
The state government argued that the acquisition was made for an integrated development of the area notified by YEIDA and including the districts of Gautam Budh Nagar, Aligarh, Mathura and Mahamaya Nagar (Hathras) within the jurisdiction of the Authority.
The government added that the land parcels were indispensable for the planned development of an integrated township in the area and for providing basic infrastructural facilities to the villages.
The court passed the order after hearing both sides. It also directed the state government to declare within two months the compensation for the land acquired in the nine villages. The petitioners will also be made part of the schemes framed by YEIDA, such as regularisation of rural abadi sites, allotment of 7% abadi land and 64.7% additional compensation.
There is also a stay on the eviction of the petitioners from the acquired land.
