Karnataka HC upholds land acquisition for KG Layout

BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday upheld the validity of land acquisition proceedings for the formation of Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout spread over 4,000 acres by the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA).

This has come as a big relief for thousands of allottees of sites and land owners waiting for the culmination of litigation pending for adjudication for nearly 16 years.

A division bench of Chief Justice P S Dinesh Kumar and Justice C M Poonacha quashed the order passed by a single judge who had in 2014 quashed the preliminary notification and final notification issued in 2008 and 2010, respectively, by the BDA for the acquisition of the land, after hearing a batch of petitions.

The single judge’s order dated July 11, 2014, was stayed by the division bench on August 18, 2014, on the appeals filed by the BDA and the development of the layout was going on in undisputed lands, except in around 600 acres which was in dispute.

Upholding the notifications by allowing the appeals filed by the BDA against the single judge’s order, with certain conditions, the court said it adjudicated the matter to take care of the concern of the allottees of sites and land owners.

The court said the BDA and the state government are required to take care to ensure that the directions issued by the court from time to time are implemented in letter and spirit to serve the purpose of the acquisition of land.

Among the conditions, the court permitted the land owners/petitioners (excluding the site owners), who are seeking to drop their lands from the acquisition, to make an application to the BDA along with necessary documents within three months. The BDA should take a decision on this within six months.

They sought to drop their lands on the ground that their lands are nursery lands, situated within the green belt, and that the buildings constructed by religious/charitable trusts and similar adjoining lands have been either left from acquisition or denotified.

For site owners who purchased land in the layouts formed before the land acquisition for Kempegowda Layout, the court asked them to register themselves for allotment of sites with BDA within three months by paying the registration fee. They are exempted from payment of the initial deposit.

Such applications have to be considered by the BDA for allotment of sites measuring 30×40 sqft as per the prevailing prices, subject to the applicants satisfying the rules. If the applicants do not fulfil the requirement under the rules, they may be considered for allotment of 20×30 sqft sites, the court added.

The court made it clear that till completion of this exercise, either for allotment of sites or for dropping of the lands from the acquisition, the possession of the applicants should not be disturbed and the existing construction should not be demolished by the BDA.