RAJAGOPAL Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present petitions have questioned the acquisition, sought to be made by issuance of Notification u/s 4 (1) and the Declaration u/s 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short 'the Act').

(2.) It is the case of the petitioners that various extent of lands in different survey numbers in Vilankuruchi Village, Coimbatore Taluk, were acquired for the purpose of Ganapathy Nagar Neighbourhood Scheme. It is the averment of the petitioners that some of the petitioners were subsequent purchasers. It is the further averment of the petitioner that neither the petitioners nor their predecessor-in-title received any notice about the acquisition. It is the case of the petitioners that the total extent of lands proposed to be acquired for the scheme was 2186.07 acres and lands in Vilankuruchi Village was acquired to an extent of 472.21 acres and 24 awards were passed for the acquisition of the said lands from 1994 to 2002. Further, the said scheme implemented in the said Vilankuruchi village covered an extent of 37.85 acres. It is the further averment of the petitioners that major portion of the lands have not yet been acquired due to orders passed by this Court and some of the writ petitions have been filed after passing of the award.

(3.) It is the further case of the writ petitioners that while the writ petitions were filed in the year 1994, the earlier Act was repealed and the new Act, viz, Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (for short 'New Act') and, therefore, the petitioners had filed requisite amendment petition, which was also allowed and the prayer was appropriately amended.