In Brief
The appellants' land was acquired for a dam project in 1981. In 2011, they sought its return under a 2001 Government resolution permitting re-grant of acquired land deemed unused. The High Court rejected this, citing Supreme Court precedent that land acquired for public purposes cannot be re-granted. The Supreme Court upheld this, holding that the re-grant policy violates Article 14 because it lacks valid criteria and ignores the public trust doctrine. The Court invalidated the policy going forward but allowed the State to frame a lawful rehabilitation policy for persons rendered landless by acquisition, within three months. The appeals were disposed of accordingly.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.