In Brief
An elderly widow's land was seized by Himachal Pradesh in 1967 for road construction without legal proceedings or compensation. Decades later, when she learned of similar compensation awarded to neighboring landowners, she filed for relief but faced delay and laches arguments. The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's dismissal, holding that the State violated her constitutional right to property under Article 300A. Finding that delay cannot bar claims for continuing constitutional breaches and that the State admitted illegal dispossession, the Court exercised extraordinary jurisdiction to direct deemed acquisition treatment, ordering compensation within eight weeks plus Rs. 1 lakh legal costs.
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