In a significant ruling, the Allahabad High Court has issued a stern warning to state authorities regarding the unauthorized use of private land without adhering to the required legal acquisition procedures. The court’s warning came during a case involving Kanyawati, a resident of Bareilly district, whose land was improperly taken for road widening.
A division bench comprising Justices Manoj Kumar Gupta and Anish Kumar Gupta emphasized that any misuse of land without proper authority or due process would lead to severe penalties against the responsible officials. The penalties, they noted, would be substantial and recovered from the personal accounts of the erring officers.
The case began when Kanyawati discovered that part of her land had been acquired to widen a road without any compensation or formal acquisition process. Despite her repeated efforts and an RTI inquiry revealing no acquisition records, her requests for compensation were ignored.
The petitioner ultimately took her grievances to the high court, which initially directed the district magistrate of Bareilly to review her compensation eligibility. However, the district-level committee dismissed her claims, stating that the road widening did not infringe on any individual rights, prompting Kanyawati to return to court.
Upon reviewing the case, the court found that the road had initially been constructed by the Sugar Industry and Cane Development Department approximately 20 years prior, without any formal acquisition. The road was later widened by the Public Works Department (PWD), encroaching upon Kanyawati’s property without following due process.
The bench highlighted that under Article 300A of the Constitution, no person’s land can be acquired without proper compensation and adherence to legal procedures. “There is no concept of implied consent for utilizing a citizen’s land without following the due procedure and without payment of compensation,” the bench declared.
In its verdict dated March 4, 2025, the court ordered the district-level committee to reassess the compensation for the land taken from Kanyawati for the road widening project. The compensation, including interest, is to be paid within four weeks, as stipulated by the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.
