Gujarat High Court
Galpar Gram Panchayat vs Union Of India on 8 January, 2025
Author: Sunita Agarwal
Bench: Sunita Agarwal
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/9461/2015 JUDGMENT DATED: 08/01/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 9461 of 2015
FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:
HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE SUNITA AGARWAL
and
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRANAV TRIVEDI
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Approved for Reporting Yes No
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GALPAR GRAM PANCHAYAT & ORS.
Versus
UNION OF INDIA & ORS.
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Appearance:
APPEARANCE DELETED for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
MR. JAIMIN R DAVE(7022) for the Petitioner(s) No.
10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,2,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
MR HARSHEEL D SHUKLA(6158) for the Respondent(s) No. 1
MR MAULIK G NANAVATI(3318) for the Respondent(s) No. 2,3
MS HETAL PATEL ASSISTANT GOVERNMENT PLEADER for the Respondent (s)
No. 4
RULE SERVED for the Respondent(s) No. 3,4
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CORAM:HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE SUNITA
AGARWAL
and
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRANAV TRIVEDI
Date : 08/01/2025
ORAL JUDGMENT
(PER : HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE SUNITA AGARWAL) Heard the learned counsels for the parties and perused the record.
2. The present petition has been filed by 25 persons, claiming to be residents of Village Galpadar, Gandhidham, Kutch. The contention Page 1 of 7 Uploaded by PHALGUNI PATEL(HC00175) on Sat Jan 18 2025 Downloaded on : Fri Jan 31 23:39:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/9461/2015 JUDGMENT DATED: 08/01/2025 undefined is that the petitioners are residing in their residential properties for the past 50 years or more at the time of filing of the writ petition and their names are duly recorded in the panchayat ownership record from the time of existence of the village in question. 2.1. It seems that the notification dated 08.03.2013 under Section 3A of the National Highways Act, 1956 was published for the purposes of widening, maintaining and operating National Highway No.8A ('N.H.8A' for short) in Kandla-Chandroda Section in District Kutch. The said notification was for acquisition of 'gamtal' land admeasuring 0.3905 Hectares as indicated from the copy of the notification at page '73'. The nature and category of the lands in question shown in the notification itself is private and non- agricultural. It is further contended in paragraph '2.6' of the writ petition that after publication of the notification dated 08.03.2013 under Section 3A of the National Highways Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the "Act, 1956"), the officers of the National Highways Authority, namely the respondents herein along with the District Inspector of Land Records (DILR), Kutch had conducted a joint survey of gamtal land. During survey, it was revealed that approximate seventy (70) people jointly or individually owned different parcels of land in the total area of gamtal land admeasuring 0.3905 Hectares, acquired by the NHAI.
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2.2. It is further contended that the names of all seventy (70) properties affecting approximately 300 persons including the name of the petitioners herein (25 in number) were shown in the measurement sheet/map attached with the DILR report which is appended as Annexure-'D' (collectively) to the writ petition. The contention thus, is, that the respondent authorities themselves have acknowledged the existence of petitioner's properties in the gamtal land. However, while issuing notification under Section 3D of the Act, 1956 dated 05.03.2014, the names of only five persons had been indicated as owners/interested persons, which can be seen from page '111' of the paper book, from the copy of notification under Section 3D of the Act, 1956 dated 05.03.2014.
3. The submission thus, in the writ petition is that in the joint survey measurement report, it was clear that the petitioner's properties were included in the proposed area of 0.3905 Hectares, notified for acquisition under the notification dated 08.03.2013 under Section 3A of the Act, 1956 and hence it was not open for the respondent - NHAI to delete the names of the petitioners herein from being owner/persons interested in the aforesaid gamtal land. It is also submitted that in the month of November, 2014, the award has been passed under Section 3G of the Act, 1956 which made a Page 3 of 7 Uploaded by PHALGUNI PATEL(HC00175) on Sat Jan 18 2025 Downloaded on : Fri Jan 31 23:39:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/9461/2015 JUDGMENT DATED: 08/01/2025 undefined mention of only 11 properties. Being aggrieved, the petitioners and other villagers had filed several representations which have not been responded to.
4. It is further contended in paragraph '2.13' of the writ petition that to the best of the knowledge of the petitioners, the substantial part of the petitioners properties are outside the approved 48.5 meter extension width. Further that according to the direction of the competent authority, NHAI, the respondents are not entitled to carry out acquisition beyond 48.5 meter and the properties of the petitioners falls outside the approved right of way.
5. Taking note of these submissions made in the writ petition, we may record that the statement that NHAI has approved only 48.5 meter extension width based on some internal communications between different officers of NHAI which are sought to be appended as Annexure-'G' to the writ petition, cannot be given any weightage. Be that as it may, from the material brought on record in the writ petition itself, a careful perusal of the notifications dated 08.03.2013 and 05.03.2014 indicates that for the purpose of extension of National Highway No. 8A between 0.000 km to 38.000 km. (Kandla- Chandroda Section), for widening/four/six lane, gamtal land of village Galpadar, Taluka Gandhidham, District Kutch admeasuring 0.3905 Page 4 of 7 Uploaded by PHALGUNI PATEL(HC00175) on Sat Jan 18 2025 Downloaded on : Fri Jan 31 23:39:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/9461/2015 JUDGMENT DATED: 08/01/2025 undefined Hectares had been acquired. The said acquisition proceedings had been brought to its logical end with the declaration notification under Section 3D dated 05.03.2014 and making of the award as per own contention of the petitioners. The fact that the names of only five persons being owners/interested in the land in question were indicated in Section 3D notification would not be relevant, inasmuch as, the determination on the question of entitlement of the persons interested in the land in question for the purposes of compensation is to be made by the competent authority, NHAI, which is empowered to declare the award.
6. We may further record that there is no whisper in the entire writ petition that the petitioners have been dispossessed on account of the construction/ widening of the National Highway. It seems that on the presentation of the writ petition, an interim order dated 09.06.2015 was passed directing the parties to maintain status-quo which was extended for some time. In the order dated 21.08.2015 passed by this Court, taking note of the reply submitted by the respondent, while maintaining the status-quo, it was clarified that if the acquiring body has already taken over possession of the land, the status-quo order will not prevent the authority from developing such land in accordance with the purpose for which the land was acquired. By another order dated 27.10.2015, it was clarified that the Page 5 of 7 Uploaded by PHALGUNI PATEL(HC00175) on Sat Jan 18 2025 Downloaded on : Fri Jan 31 23:39:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/9461/2015 JUDGMENT DATED: 08/01/2025 undefined order dated 21.08.2015 shall be confined only to the lands of the petitioners covered under the notification dated 05.03.2014 under Section 3D of the Act, 1956 and award dated 05.02.2015 under Section 3G of the Act, 1956.
7. Considering the above, suffice it to record that the prayers made in the writ petition for restraining the respondents from carrying out the purpose of acquisition i.e. for widening/constructing the National Highway 8A, cannot be granted. Further, there is no challenge to the acquisition notification on any of the grounds available to challenge the acquisition made for a public purpose. On any issue raised with regard to the right or interest of the petitioners in the acquired land, namely gamtal land of village Galpadar, Taluka
- Gandhidham, District Kutch (out of 0.3905 Hectares), it would be open for the petitioners to approach the competent authority seeking for determination of their right of disbursement of compensation, for the acquired area of any portion of the land belonging to the petitioners, as is sought to be agitated in the writ petition. While saying so, we may clarify that, in case, the petitioners approaches the competent authority, NHAI, namely the Deputy Collector concerned, raising any dispute with respect to his entitlement of compensation for the acquisition of any portion of the land belonging to the petitioners or the land in which the petitioners are interested, Page 6 of 7 Uploaded by PHALGUNI PATEL(HC00175) on Sat Jan 18 2025 Downloaded on : Fri Jan 31 23:39:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/9461/2015 JUDGMENT DATED: 08/01/2025 undefined it would be obligatory on the part of the competent authority to issue notice to all persons interested in the total acquired gamtal lands admeasuring 0.3905 Hectares including the concerned gram panchayat. The determination on the question of right of the petitioners to receive compensation, if any, for the acquired portion of the land belonging to the petitioners, in any case, shall be made after giving due notice and opportunity to all concern. The intricate question of right, title and interest of the petitioners in the acquired land, if arise, the same be referred for adjudication to the Civil Court.
8. While clarifying that we have not entered into the merits of the claim of the petitioner with regard to having right, title or interest in the acquired area of gamtal land admeasuring 0.3905 Hectares of Village Galpadar, Gandhidham, District Kutch, we dispose of the writ petition with the observations and directions given herein above. With the above order, it goes without saying that the initial interim order dated 09.06.2015 directing the parties to maintain status-quo will not survive. Rule is discharged.
Pending application, if any, stand disposed of, accordingly.
(SUNITA AGARWAL, CJ ) (PRANAV TRIVEDI,J) phalguni Page 7 of 7 Uploaded by PHALGUNI PATEL(HC00175) on Sat Jan 18 2025 Downloaded on : Fri Jan 31 23:39:00 IST 2025