CHENNAI: A division bench of the Madras High Court has ordered notice to the authorities concerned on a PIL petition challenging Sec 105 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 and the Fourth Schedule to the law as well as the entire land acquisition proceedings initiated under the National Highways Act, 1956, for implementing the Green Field Chennai-Salem Highway project.
A bench of Justices T S Sivagnanam and N Seshasayee, before which the PIL from NGO — Poovulagin Nanbargal — came up for hearing on Thursday, issued the notices, returnable by July 12. Earlier, Advocate-General Vijay Narayan told the bench that the benefits under the 2013 Act were already given to the land owners. In fact, they will be paid three to four times more the value of the land, he added.
Representing the Union government, Additional Solicitor General G Rajagopalan submitted that the petitioner was not affected by the notification and hence had no locus standi.
According to the organisation, the authorities concerned had already started proceedings under the National Highways Act in respect of the highway, even before receiving objections from the affected persons. It was only on June 11, the authorities issued the notification inviting objections within 21 days, the petitioner said.
The Right to Fair Compensation Act ensures a transparent process for land acquisition for industrialisation, development of essential infrastructural facilities and urbanisation with the least disturbance to the stake-holders.
But, contrary to the very object of the law, the impugned Sec105 of the Act provides that the provisions of the Act shall not apply to land acquisition under the enactments specified in the Fourth Schedule to the Act, which includes the National Highways Act, petitioner contended.
PIL dismissed
Chennai: A division bench of the Madras High Court has dismissed in limine, a PIL petition demanding that Metro Rail fares be reduced fixed on a par with the fares of suburban electric trains. According to the petitioner, one of the stipulations promised by the Bharatiya Janata Party in its election manifesto was fares on a par with the ones charged in suburban trains.