Blow to TATA motors: SC rules against land acquisition for Singur Nano plant

 

The verdict, which came as a huge setback to the auto major, was delivered by a bench of Justices V Gopala Gowda and Arun Mishra which quashed the land acquisition process invoked by the erstwhile CPI(M)-led government headed by Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

 

Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government, which first came to power in 2011 after spearheading agitation of cultivators affected by the acquisition, got a shot in its arm as the apex court approved its political plank that the land should be returned to the cultivators.

 

The two judges, who were unanimous in quashing the acquisition process and for retainment of the compensation awarded to the land owners and the cultivators for being deprived of the use of their land for last 10 years, gave their own separate reasoning for arriving at their findings.

 

They agreed that the land should be restored in 12 weeks to the owners and cultivators after completing the survey, identification and other formalities within 10 weeks.

 

Singur farmers celebrate SC verdict

Farmers whose land was acquired for the Tata Motors Nano car factory at Singur and their families burst out in jubilation after the Supreme Court held the acquisition illegal.

Hundreds of people, who were waiting for the apex court's verdict since the morning, erupted in joy as soon as the news flashed on their television screens.

 

The apex court said the state government cannot claim back the amount of compensation given to the land-losers as it had enjoyed the right over the acquired land for ten years.

 

There was disagreement between the two judges on two points, with Justice Gowda saying that the land was not acquired for public purpose directly by the Tata Motors and Justice Mishra holding that there was no illegality in the land acquisition of land for public purpose as it would have given employment to thousands of people in West Bengal.

 

Tata Motors reaction

Tata Motors has said it would study the Supreme Court judgement on Singur in detail before commenting on it. It further said "Our case relating to the Singur Act of 2011 is yet to be heard by Supreme Court. We will study the current judgement in detail before commenting further on the same."

 

 

Immediately after the verdict, Banerjee, the Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo, termed the judgement as a landmark victory and said "We waited for ten years for this judgement and it is a victory of the farmers".

 

Chief Minister Mamata's reaction

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee termed as "landmark victory" and said we have waited 10 years for this judgement, following the Supreme Court judgement on land acquisition by Tata Motors.

 

Her party's Lok Sabha MP and senior advocate Kalyan Bandopadhyay who spearheaded the legal battle told PTI that the judgement is going to be an "eye-opener" in land acquisition cases.

"After 10 years of a long political and legal battle, the apex court has successfully approved the stand taken by us to the extent that the acquisition was illegal," he said.