HUKAM SINGH Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition is filed to quash the land acquisition proceedings issued in Notification No. 5302-Spl. Cell-81/10830, dated March 26, 1982 (Ann. P.1.)

(2.) The State of Haryana issued a notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 to acquire the land comprised in Rect. No. 76, Killa Nos. 8, 9 and 13, situated in village Kheri Kalan, Tehsil Ballabgarh, District Faridabad to provide residential plots to landless/homeless Harijans by the impugned notification dated March 26, 1982. As the authority was satisfied that the acquisition of land is for an urgent important purpose, it invoked the provisions of Section 17(4) of the Land Acquisition Act and dispensed with the enquiry under section 5-A of the Act. Challenging the said action, the petitioners filed this writ petition. According to the petitioners, the petitioners are small landowners and their land is sought to be acquired with an ulterior motive leaving more suitable land available in the village and also the land belonging to Wakf Board. According to them, the more suitable land belongs to the very influential people and are big landowner but the State of Haryana did not acquire their land because of the influence of other people. It is their case that if objections were called for and enquiry was conducted under Section 5-A of the Act they would have demonstrated that the acquisition of their land is not in public interest and more suitable land is available in the village for acquisition for the purpose of providing residential plots to the landless poor people.

(3.) The writ petition was filed on 9.4.1982 and this Court issued notice of motion and stayed dispossession of the petitioners by an order dated 12.4.1982 and fixed the matter for 25.5.1982 on which date the learned State Counsel made a request to file a written statement and the matter was adjourned to 28.7.1982. Again on 28.7.1982, further request was made to file a written statement and the matter stood adjourned to 25.8.1982. Even on 25.8.1982, no written statement was filed, therefore, this Court admitted the writ petition and ordered the stay to continue. It was only on 5.1.1989 i.e. nearly after 7 years, after the admission of the writ petition the State filed a written statement, wherein it was stated that the land was being acquired to provide residential plots to landless poor Harijans for expeditious implementation of the 20 point programme of Government of India, and they further pleaded that no suitable land either belonging to Tej Singh and others or Wakf Board was available.