Allahabad High Court upholds land acquisition for Noida airport expansion

The Allahabad High Court has upheld land acquisition for the expansion of the Noida International Airport in Gautam Buddh Nagar district, dismissing petitions filed by affected landowners.

The court held that the acquisition process had been carried out in full compliance with the provisions of the 2013 land acquisition law and that there was no material irregularity in it.

A division bench comprising Justice MC Tripathi and Justice Kunal Ravi Singh while deciding a batch of writ petitions observed, “In view of the foregoing discussion and for the reasons stated herein above, this Court finds no merit in the challenge raised by the petitioners to the impugned notifications dated April 11, 2025 and October 24, 2025.”

The court further said, “This Court declines to interfere in the acquisition proceedings which have been conducted in conformity with the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 and the Rules, 2016 framed thereunder.” However, the bench directed the authorities to ensure that rehabilitation measures are fully implemented before taking possession of residential lands.

Disposing of the petitions filed by a group of villagers and farmers, including Vijay Pal Singh and others, the court, in its April 28 judgment, held that the acquisition process had been carried out in full compliance with the provisions of the 2013 land acquisition law.

The court noted that there was no material irregularity in the process and emphasised that the statutory framework had been followed at every stage from the issuance of notifications to the award of compensation.