In Brief
The Supreme Court dismissed appeals by landholders seeking enhanced compensation for land acquired in 2004 for Industrial Model Township Phase-V in Manesar, Gurgaon. The High Court had valued land at Rs.48,46,000 per acre (Naurangpur, Lakhnoula) and Rs.43,61,400 per acre (other villages). The Court held that market valuation should rely primarily on contemporaneous sale deeds analysed for comparable features. The unsafe method of cumulative annual increase over past valuations cannot displace valuation based on actual sale deeds, especially when the time gap exceeds a few years. The High Court's assessment, based on reasoned consideration of available sale deeds, location, and development factors, required no interference.
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