The Right to Fair Compensation under “The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013”

Abstract

This paper is mainly focused on compensation and its protection under Indian Constitution, judicial approach and development of concept of compensation, relevant principles of compensation mean general rules whose application enables us to determine the market value. The problem of valuation and determination of present market value in relation to lands and buildings under laws relating to Land Acquisition. Cases decided by the the Supreme Court in Bela Banerjee v. State of West Bengal 2 and State of West Bengal v. Subodh Gopal Bose 3 is deeply analyzed to test the law providing for acquisition or extension of interest of private owners in properties. It is observed that the power of the sovereign to take private property for public use and the consequent rights of the owner to compensation are well established. In justification of the power, two maxims are often cited Salus Populi est Supreme lex (regard for the public welfare is the highest law) and Necessities Public a major est quam Privata (Public necessity is greater than private necessity). The Land Acquisition Act seems to be very special as much legislations are based on it; facilitating awaited industrialization, giving a solution to unemployment4, widening the divide between urban and rural5, threatening environment and propagating disguised unemployment6etc. The tops-turvy journey of Indian Supreme Court has been swaying in between the idea of ‘Social Justice’, ‘Distributive Justice’, land reforms and Zamindari abolition by compensatory acquisition of land. But in doing so the achievement of Indian Supreme Court has that one size fit all type of computation formula for calculation of compensation cannot be applied to each and every case. The Judiciary has discussed all pros and cons of various types of valuation method. However due to variety of properties and allied attachments, one type cannot be applied to each case uniformly.