In a move to bring more transparency during acquisition process of immovable property, the Centre has decided that the property owner or any person claiming compensation on the property will be given opportunity to be heard. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (HoUA) will table a related Bill called ‘The Requisitioning of Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Act 2017’ in the lok Sabha on Monday.
The Bill seeks to amend the provision to allow the Central Government to re-issue the notice of acquisition in order to ensure that the property’s owner gets an opportunity to be heard. The property owner at such hearing will have to provide reasons for why the property should not be acquired. Interestingly, the Government is introducing this Bill on the day of counting day of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly polls.
The Bill is being introduced amid instances of persons interested in a property challenging the acquisition move citing that they were not given the opportunity for personal hearing. The Bill was introduced in the lok Sabha in the last Monsoon Session but could not be taken up.
Sources in the HoUA Ministry, there could be situations that result in prolonged litigations and if the Supreme Court quashes the notice of acquisition, there might be astronomical hike in compensation amount on account of market value appreciation. Against this backdrop, the bill seeks to amend a section of the Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property Act to “enable the central Government to re-issue the notice of acquisition to the owner or such other person interested in the property, for the purpose of giving (an) opportunity of being heard”.
As per the Bill, the Government may re-issue the acquisition notice to the property owner (or a person interested in the property) to give them adequate opportunity for a hearing.
This would be irrespective of any past court orders or judgments setting aside any past notices for acquisition. However, the re-issue of notice will not apply to cases where the compensation has already been awarded and accepted by the claimants.
The Bill also provides in cases where a notice has been re-issued, the property owner will be entitled to an interest on the compensation payable to them. The Bill also provides that such enhanced compensation will be awarded only if the acquisition notice has been re-issued, and the land is being acquired for the purpose of national security and defence. It is proposed to give effect to the amendments from the date of enactment of the Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property Act, 1952, namely, the 14th March 14, 1952.
“The owner or the person interested in the property would also be entitled to annual rate of interest — prevalent at any relevant time on the compensation payable — from the date of publishing the first notice till payment of the final compensation,” the Bill said.