Back
Himachal High Court Allows Sat Dev Singh Enhanced Compensation Despite Not Challenging Award
The has held that a landowner who secured enhanced compensation under an from the cannot be denied a further enhancement merely because he did not independently challenge the original land acquisition award. Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua allowed the writ petition of Sat Dev Singh, ordering HPPCL to pay further enhancement with a .
The Long Road to Compensation
The dispute originates from the acquisition of land for the Renukaji Dam Project . In 2009, HPPCL acquired 17-15 bighas of Sat Dev Singh's land through private negotiation, paying Rs. 16,27,500. As part of the deal, HPPCL gave a written assurance dated that if the negotiated rates were enhanced in the future, the same enhanced rates would be paid to him. The assurance explicitly aimed to ensure voluntary sellers were not disadvantaged compared to those whose land was acquired through formal land acquisition proceedings.
When the announced on , fixing higher rates per bigha, Sat Dev Singh approached the High Court in . This writ was allowed on , directing HPPCL to pay enhanced compensation as per the award. The judgment was affirmed by a in and the dismissed the on .
Further Enhancement and the Defences Raised
Subsequently, in reference petitions and regular first appeals arising from the same and a connected , the High Court enhanced the compensation to a uniform rate of Rs. 7 lakh per bigha irrespective of classification. This was confirmed in decided on . Based on this, Sat Dev Singh issued a legal notice on seeking further enhancement for his land. When HPPCL rejected the claim, he filed the present writ.
HPPCL opposed the petition on two grounds: and the bar under . It argued that Sat Dev Singh had not challenged under for 13 biswas of his land, and he failed to amend his earlier writ after the 's decision in 2018. Therefore, his claim was barred.
Court Rejects Plea of
The court categorically rejected these defences. It observed that the earlier challenge was exclusively for the 17-15 bighas acquired through negotiation, based on HPPCL's . The failure to independently challenge for 13 biswas acquired under the Act did not him from claiming further enhancement for the negotiated land.
"Merely not assailing qua 13 biswas of land acquired in accordance with provision of the will not the petitioner from seeking compensation for his 17-15 bighas of land acquired through negotiative means, more so, in light of conclusion and findings already rendered in Sat Dev Singh."
The court further noted that HPPCL was a party to all subsequent proceedings and was fully aware that compensation under had been enhanced to Rs. 7 lakh per bigha. It held HPPCL was duty-bound to inform the court of this fact.
"Respondent, being the project beneficiary, was party in all the proceedings... was duty bound to inform the Court that amount of compensation under had actually been enhanced to Rs. 7 lacs per bigha."
Balancing Equities
While allowing the petition, the court balanced equities by denying 15% interest on the enhanced amount from (the date of the earlier decision) until the date of this judgment. The compensation payable was calculated with the assistance of counsel, resulting in a total amount of Rs. 35,52,1740 .
Implications
The ruling clarifies that a landowner who relies on a voluntary is not bound by the usual procedural bars of when subsequent court decisions further enhance compensation for the same project. It reinforces that project authorities who give such undertakings cannot later deny the benefit of subsequent enhancements merely because the landowner did not independently challenge the original award. The judgment also underscores the duty of acquiring bodies to inform the court of all developments that affect compensation payable under their assurance.
