Handover 24 acre land to owner, SC to Maha govt

New Delhi : The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Maharashtra authorities to hand over “peaceful and vacant” possession of over 24 acres of an alternative land parcel to a person whose land was “illegally” occupied more than six decades ago.

The apex court also accepted the unconditional apology tendered by Rajesh Kumar, additional chief secretary of the forest and revenue department, against whom it had on August 28 issued a show cause notice asking why contempt action should not be initiated against him for “contemptuous remarks” made in an affidavit filed by the department. The affidavit appeared to suggest that the apex court does not follow the law.

“The applicant as well as the court may not approve the fresh calculation made by the Collector, Pune (for grant of monetary compensation to the applicant) but it is the bounden duty of the state to follow the provisions of law and to arrive at a proper calculation,” the affidavit filed on behalf of Kumar said, which the court found contemptuous. Kumar, in his affidavit, said the state was willing to offer a sum of Rs 48.65 crore as compensation.

However, the applicant insisted the market value of the land was over Rs 250 crore. The applicant then sought a substitute parcel of land as compensation.

A bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan directed the collector, Pune, to ensure that 24 acres 38 gunthas of substitute land is measured, demarcated and its “peaceful and vacant possession be handed over to the applicant”. It said if there were encroachments on the land, the same shall be removed prior to it being handed over to the applicant. The bench accepted the undertaking filed by the state authority which stated that peaceful and vacant possession of the land would be handed over to the applicant.