Explain delay in passing supplementary award against land acquisition, says Punjab and Haryana High Court

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, April 3

In a significant development, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the competent authority for land acquisition-cum-DRO, Ludhiana, to provide an explanation for not passing supplementary award. The authority has also been directed to furnish the explanation after being personally present before the Bench.

The direction came after Justice Rajbir Sehrawat’s Bench was told that the initial award only covered the acquired land. But compensation for other assets, such as buildings, structures, trees, and tubewells was pending, awaiting assessment reports from the relevant departments.

The Bench was hearing a petition filed against the competent authority and other respondents by Labh Green Solution LLP and other respondents through counsel Charanpal Singh Bagri and Gurjit Kaur. At the very onset, the counsel submitted that the competent authority had itself observed that the award was being passed only with regard to the acquired land and that the compensation for buildings. Any other assets attached to the land would be announced subsequently on receipt of the assessment report from the department concerned.

But thereafter supplementary award was not passed by the competent authority, despite having been repeatedly approached by the petitioners, Bagri told the Bench during the course of hearing. Issuing notice of motion to the competent authority and other respondents, Justice Sehrawat fixed July 4 as the next date of hearing in the matter.

“The competent authority shall remain personally present before this Court on the next date of hearing; with an explanation as to why any supplementary award has not been passed so far, as was mentioned in the award dated March 22, 2022,” Justice Sehrawat asserted.