State Of Punjab vs Gurdial Singh & Ors on 25 October, 1979
"21. Our attention was also invited by Shri Shanti
Bhushan, learned Senior Counsel for the appellants to a
decision of a two-Judge Bench of this Court in the case
of State of Punjab v. Gurdial Singh wherein Krishna
Iyer, J. dealing with the question of exercise of
emergency powers under Section 17 of the Act observed
in para 16 of the Report that save in real urgency where
public interest did not brook even the minimum time
needed to give a hearing, land acquisition authorities
should not, having regard to Articles 14 and 19, burke an
inquiry under Section 17 of the Act. Thus, according to
the aforesaid decision of this Court, inquiry under
Section 5-A is not merely statutory but also has a flavour
of fundamental rights under Articles 14 and 19 of the
Constitution though right to property has now no longer
remained a fundamental right, at least observation
regarding Article 14, vis-`-vis, Section 5-A of the Land
Acquisition Act would remain apposite."