The High Court of Uttarakhand has directed the Uttar Pradesh Housing and Development Board to pay Rs 22 crore compensation within three months to a petitioner for his land acquired in 1980. The High Court division bench upheld the earlier decision of the single bench in which the UPHDB had been directed to pay the entire compensation amount to the petitioner-Dehradun resident Bhav Harihar Lal.
The UPHDB had acquired Lal’s land in 1980 but did not pay the entire compensation amount more than three decades later. Earlier, the High Court single bench had directed the special land acquisition officer, Dehradun, to ascertain compensation for the said land while directing the UPHDB to deposit the amount.
The single bench had also ordered that the entire compensation amount be paid to the petitioner.
The UPHDB had paid a sum of Rs 6 crore and filed a special appeal against the single bench order on the grounds that only the lower court and not the High Court has the right to execute against award in such cases.
The division bench of chief justice Ramesh Ranganathan and justice Alok Singh rejected this contention of the UPHDB and stated that there is provision in the new land acquisition law that possession of land acquired from a farmer can be taken only when the farmer is paid full compensation for the land. There is provision in section 38 (2) of the new land acquisition act for payment of compensation within three months.
Quashing the special appeal of the UPHDB, the division bench directed it to pay a sum of Rs 22 crore to the petitioner within three months.