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HC denotifies 70 hec more
The Allahabad high court on Friday set aside the acquisition of about 70 hectares of land in the Surajpur area of Greater Noida. Darpan Singh reports.
The Allahabad high court on Friday set aside the acquisition of about 70 hectares of land in the Surajpur area of Greater Noida. The acquisition was quashed as the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) had not invited objections from farmers and heard them.
The land, acquired for industrial development, belongs to about 160 families and has not been allotted to any firm. The court has ordered the said land be returned to the owners.
On Thursday, the court set aside the acquisition of about 150 hectares of land (already allotted to major real estate players) in the Noida Extension area on similar grounds.
About Friday’s judgment, Pankaj Dubey, counsel for petitioner Rajendra Prasad, told HT, “A division Bench comprising justices Sunil Ambwani and KN Pandey said the state was not justified in invoking the urgency provisions (not hearing objections) in the Land Acquisition Act. The court clubbed 42 petitions and heard the matter.”
The acquisition notification, which has now been quashed, was issued in 2009. Now, the government can issue a fresh notification, hear the objections and go for the acquisition process.
Farmers of several villages, including Gulistapur, Hazratpur, Khapkheda, Sudna Khurd and Vaidpura, have also moved court, seeking similar relief.
In April, the Supreme Court had quashed the acquisition of 205 hectares of agricultural land in Gautam Buddh Nagar.
