2022 (4) TMI 1666 - SC - Indian Laws

Dispossession without statutory acquisition breaches Article 300-A; lands deemed acquired, compensation, solatium and interest under Section 4 in four months

SC held that dispossession without statutory acquisition violated Article 300-A and rule of law, directing the State to treat the lands as deemed acquired ... Exercise of writ jurisdiction under Article 226 to secure compensation where State authorities have taken and used private land without following statutory acquisition procedure and without payment of compensation - right to property - inherent right or not - HELD THAT:- While the right to property is no longer a fundamental right [Constitution (Forty Fourth Amendment) Act, 1978.], it is pertinent to note that at the time of dispossession of the subject land, this right was still included in Part III of the Constitution. The right against deprivation of property unless in accordance with procedure established by law, continues to be a constitutional right under Article 300-A. 14. It is the cardinal principle of the rule of law, that nobody can be deprived of liberty or property without due process, or authorization of law. When it comes to the subject of private property, this court has upheld the high threshold of legality that must be met, to dispossess an individual of their property, and even more so when done by the State. In Bishandas v. State of Punjab [1961 (4) TMI 98 - SUPREME COURT] this court rejected the contention that the petitioners in the case were trespassers and could be removed by an executive order, and instead concluded that the executive action taken by the State and its officers, was destructive of the basic principle of the rule of law. In view of this court’s extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 136 and 142 of the Constitution, the State is hereby directed to treat the subject lands as a deemed acquisition and appropriately disburse compensation to the appellants in the same terms as the order of the reference court dated 04.10.2005 in Land Ref. Petition No. 10-LAC/4 of 2004 (and consolidated matters). The Respondent-State is directed, consequently to ensure that the appropriate Land Acquisition Collector computes the compensation, and disburses it to the appellants, within four months from today. The appellants would also be entitled to consequential benefits of solatium, and interest on all sums payable under law w.e.f 16.10.2001 (i.e. date of issuance of notification under Section 4 of the Act), till the date of the impugned judgment, i.e. 12.09.2013. The impugned order of the High Court is hereby set aside - Appeal allowed. ISSUES PRESENTED AND CONSIDERED 1. Whether writ jurisdiction under Article 226 can be exercised to secure compensation where State authorities have taken and used private land without following statutory acquisition procedure and without payment of compensation. 2. Whether delay and laches can bar relief in claims for deprivation of property where the taking is alleged to have occurred decades earlier and statute of limitations has not been pleaded as a bar. 3. Whether parity with neighbouring or similarly situated landowners who obtained compensation and consequential benefits can justify directing compensation for claimants whose lands were used for the same public purpose. 4. Whether oral/verbal consent alleged by the State to use private land can defeat a claim for compensation in the absence of corroborative material and where the State has not followed statutory modes of acquisition. 5. What relief and consequential benefits (including solatium, statutory interest and costs) are appropriate where the Court finds forcible dispossession without due process. ISSUE-WISE DETAILED ANALYSIS Issue 1 - Availability of writ relief for forcible dispossession without statutory acquisition Legal framework: Article 300-A (constitutional protection against deprivation of property save by authority of law); statutory scheme governing acquisition/requisition; constitutional writ jurisdiction under Article 226 to enforce legal and constitutional rights. Precedent Treatment: The Court applied established decisions holding that the State must comply with statutory modes before depriving persons of property and that courts may grant relief where executive action lacks legal pedigree. Earlier authorities treating forcible dispossession as impermissible were followed. Interpretation and reasoning: The Court emphasised the high threshold of legality required when the State seeks to deprive individuals of property, noting that executive resumption of possession cannot substitute for statutory acquisition. Where the State failed to show lawful acquisition or payment of compensation, the Court held that the writ jurisdiction was available to secure just remedy despite passage of time. Ratio vs. Obiter: Ratio - Where the State has taken and used private land without following statutory procedure and without payment of compensation, constitutional courts may exercise writ jurisdiction to direct compensation and consequential benefits. Obiter - Historical references to rule-of-law principles and older judgments illustrating the rule (supportive but not novel holdings). Conclusion: Writ relief under Article 226 was available and justified to direct deemed acquisition and payment of compensation where dispossession occurred without lawful authority. Issue 2 - Effect of delay and laches on claims for deprivation of property Legal framework: Principles of equity regarding laches; no prescribed period of limitation for exercise of constitutional jurisdiction; distinction between barred statutory limitation and equitable laches. Precedent Treatment: The Court accepted precedent which holds that delay and laches are matters of judicial discretion to be assessed on equitable principles and that they do not automatically extinguish fundamental-rights claims, especially in continuing causes of action or where circumstances shock judicial conscience. Cases supporting refusal to deny relief for delay in analogous factual matrices were followed; authorities where delay was fatal in other contexts were distinguished. Interpretation and reasoning: The Court analysed the conduct of the State and found selective, lackadaisical action - acquiring lands only for those who approached the courts - which compounded the injustice and constituted a continuing wrong. The Court held that mere delay by claimants, in the absence of prejudice to the State and given the State's conduct, did not justify denying relief. Delay must be assessed against length of delay, acts done during the interval, and whether postponing relief would produce practical injustice. Ratio vs. Obiter: Ratio - Delay and laches do not necessarily bar relief where the deprivation is a continuing wrong, where the State has been culpable or where granting relief is necessary to do substantial justice; courts must exercise discretion based on equitable principles. Obiter - General observations contrasting categories of cases where laches has been held fatal (service, recovery of statutory dues) were explanatory. Conclusion: Delay and laches did not preclude relief in the present factual matrix; the Court condoned delay and proceeded to grant relief. Issue 3 - Parity with other claimants and relief by analogy to reference awards Legal framework: Principle that similarly situated persons should be treated alike; equitable considerations where State has already compensated other owners whose land was used for same public purpose; entitlement to consequential statutory benefits under the acquisition statute (solatium, enhanced compensation, interest). Precedent Treatment: The Court relied on precedents where courts have extended the benefit of awards and consequential statutory benefits to parties in analogous factual positions where State had failed to follow lawful procedure. Precedents granting parity-based relief and statutory benefits in similar dispossession cases were followed. Interpretation and reasoning: The Court found that the subject land had been used for the same public purpose and at the same time as lands for which awards were passed. The State offered no material to distinguish the claimants' position (such as evidence of lawful acquisition or written consent). Accordingly, treating the lands as a deemed acquisition and directing compensation on the same terms as the reference award was equitable and legally appropriate. Ratio vs. Obiter: Ratio - Where lands were taken for the same public project and State has paid compensation to others, courts may direct deemed acquisition and payment of compensation on like terms to similarly placed owners when the State has acted selectively and has not produced evidence of lawful acquisition. Obiter - Discussion on non-adjoining nature of land and its irrelevance where use and deprivation were similar. Conclusion: Parity justified directing compensation and consequential benefits equivalent to those awarded to other claimants for the same project. Issue 4 - Alleged oral consent and evidentiary burden on State Legal framework: Requirement that deprivation of property must be in accordance with law; evidentiary burden on the State to justify its actions and establish lawful acquisition or valid consent; need for written consent in statutory contexts affecting land. Precedent Treatment: The Court followed decisions refusing to accept unsubstantiated claims of oral consent as superseding statutory protections and holding State to a higher burden of proof when dispossessing persons of property. Interpretation and reasoning: The State's averment of verbal consent was uncorroborated. The Court emphasised that absent material evidence of written consent or statutory acquisition, oral consent cannot defeat entitlement to compensation. The selective initiation of proceedings by the State reinforced the lack of lawful foundation for the dispossession. Ratio vs. Obiter: Ratio - Allegations of oral consent do not absolve the State of demonstrating lawful acquisition; in the absence of supporting material, such allegations cannot defeat a claim for compensation. Obiter - Remarks on procedural expectations from the State in land matters. Conclusion: Oral consent was insufficient to defeat the claim; State failed to discharge evidentiary burden of lawful acquisition. Issue 5 - Relief, consequential benefits and costs Legal framework: Power of superior courts to mould relief under constitutional jurisdiction; statutory provisions prescribing solatium, enhanced compensation and interest from appropriate dates in acquisition awards; equitable award of costs where State conduct has caused undue delay and hardship. Precedent Treatment: The Court applied precedents directing deemed acquisition, computation of compensation by land acquisition authorities, payment of statutory solatium and interest from the date of notification, and awarding costs for prolonged denial of rights. Interpretation and reasoning: Considering the absence of lawful acquisition and the existence of a comparable reference award, the Court directed the State to treat the subject lands as deemed acquired and to pay compensation and consequential statutory benefits (solatium and interest) from the date of statutory notification applicable to the comparable award, with computation and disbursal to be effected by the Land Acquisition Collector within a fixed period. Costs were awarded in light of the disregard for fundamental rights and resulting delay. Ratio vs. Obiter: Ratio - Where forcible dispossession without lawful acquisition is established and similarly situated owners have been compensated, courts may direct deemed acquisition, payment of compensation on like terms including solatium and interest from the relevant statutory date, and award costs. Obiter - Specific guidance on timelines and supervisory directions are remedial particulars tailored to the facts. Conclusion: The Court directed deemed acquisition, payment of compensation and statutory benefits from the identified statutory date until the impugned judgment, with a time-bound mandate to the Collector for computation and payment, and awarded legal costs to the claimants.