Legal provisions involved: Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India; Land Acquisition Act, 1894; Bangalore Development Authority Act

Judgement by: High Court of Karnataka

Judge/Bench: Justice D.K. Singh and Justice Tara Vitasta Ganju

Facts

The petitioners owned about 26 acres of land in Hennur Village, Bengaluru, which was acquired by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) for the Arkavathi Layout. During earlier court proceedings, the landowners filed a memo clearly stating that they had no objection to the acquisition. 

They also sought passing of the award and payment of compensation, claiming that possession had already been handed over. Many years later, after certain lands were deleted from acquisition following court directions and committee reviews, the petitioners requested that their land be excluded.

Key legal provisions

• Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India
• Land Acquisition Act, 1894
• Bangalore Development Authority Act, 1976

Issues raised

Whether landowners who consented to acquisition and claimed compensation can later seek deletion of their land from acquisition.

Arguments of the case

The petitioners argued that their land was wrongly restored to acquisition despite earlier deletion. The BDA argued that the petitioners had accepted acquisition and could not change their stand later.

Judgement

The court dismissed the petition. It held that once the landowners had given consent to acquisition and sought compensation, they lost the right to later demand exclusion. The committee’s decision restoring the land to BDA was found to be lawful and proper.

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