Punjab: HC orders status quo on 469 acres sold to a developer in Rajpura

As per the plea of farmers, 446 acres was handed over to M/s Shriram Industrial Enterprises Limited in 1995, 91 acre in 1998 and another 57 acre in 2007

The Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) has ordered status quo on construction and possession over 469 acres of land in Rajpura allegedly sold by M/s Shriram Industrial Enterprises Limited (SIEL Ltd) to a private developer — SBP group.

As per the plea, Punjab signed a memorandum of understanding on October 14, 1993, with SIEL Ltd for acquiring 1,000 acres of land in the vicinity of Rajpura in Patiala for industrial development. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

As per the plea, Punjab signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on October 14, 1993, with SIEL Ltd for acquiring 1,000 acres of land in the vicinity of Rajpura in Patiala for industrial development. Out of the acquired land, 469.37 acres were sold for more than ₹117 crore by the SIEL to SBP group in October 2024 in “violation” of the terms and conditions, as per the plea.

The high court bench of justice Deepak Sibal and justice Lapita Banerji acted on the plea of farmers, who are original landowners. “In the meanwhile, status quo with regard to construction, possession and alienation of the land covered under the agreement dated October 11, 2024, pertaining to 469.37 acres, shall be maintained,” the court ordered while seeking response by December 2 from the government and private respondents.

As per the plea, 446 acres was handed over to SIEL in 1995, 91 acre in 1998 and another 57 acre in 2007.

Their counsel Amrindra Pratap Singh had told the court that the acquisition was with the object that SIEL would develop the acquired land, which would not only promote industrial growth in the state, but would also result in providing better employment opportunities and uplift the economic standards of the residents, particular of this area. The SIEL utilised just a portion for the land between 1990 to 2000. It constructed a boundary wall over 100 acres, but used only 40 acres within the same to set up a chemical manufacturing plant. For about 30 years, majority of the land acquired by the state, possession of which was also handed over to SIEL, remains unutilised, they had submitted adding that now the company sold 469 acre of land to a developer, which was to be developed by the company for industrial purposes.