High Court quashes Telangana's controversial land acquisition GO 123

In a major embarrassment to the TRS government in Telangana, the Hyderabad High Court today quashed the controversial Government Order (GO) 123. The GO was brought about by the state to circumvent many provisions for the social security of those affected by major projects like dams or industries.  

 

The single judge bench of Justice Suresh Kait dismissed the GO, stating that there was no need for another GO the when Land Acquisition Act 2013 was available to the government. 

 

"You can't bypass the Land Acquisition Act, 2013. And the rights of the landless poor under the project should also be taken care of, as per the provisions of the Act," the Court said in a judgment with far-reaching consequences.

 

The ruling comes at a time when farmers in the Mallanna Sagar reservoir area, in Medak and those affected by some lift irrigation projects in the Mahabubnagar district, are fighting against the invocation of GO 123 to take over their lands.

 

The judgment is bound to affect the land acquisition process initiated by the Telangana government across the state using GO 123. The government’s argument is that the GO offers more compensation to the farmer than the provisions of the 2013 Land Act.

 

The ruling is the second major setback to chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s government in the past one week. The first was the quashing of the appointment of Vice Chancellors to the state. 

 

In the VC appointment case, the High Court on July 29 nullified the order issued appointing vice-chancellors to six universities in the state. 

 

A division bench of the High Court made it clear that the state should adhere to the UGC Regulations of 2010 while appointing the vice-chancellors. 

 

The Court declared the state government's action as illegal and struck down the GO issued by the state amending the AP Universities Act, 1991 and other acts related to state universities.

 

Today’s case is related to the livelihood rights of project-affected landless people from the villages that come under a National Investment and Manufacturing Zone (NIMZ), proposed to be set up in Medak district, Telangana.  

 

The state government had initiated steps to collect land from farmers invoking the GO 123, but that order is silent on the rehabilitation of landless poor like agriculture labourers and artisans living in the villages.

 

“The GO was brought to circumvent the R&R provisions of the Land Acquisition Act 2013. While the Act talks of compensation to the landless poor in villages, the Telangana government’s order is not bothered about these people. The GO is confined to extending compensation to landed people in the project affected area in Medak district,” advocate KS Murthy, who represented the landless labourers, told Asianet Newsable.

 

According to Murthy, the 2013 Act was very comprehensive, and it takes care of the livelihood rights of landless people as well.

 

"If a village has to be evacuated to make room for a project or industry, the Act makes it obligatory on the part of the government to pay compensation to the landless poor and labourers also. Such a provision is missing in the GO 123. So the labourers, whose livelihood rights are threatened under the proposed NIMZ in Medak district, approached the Court for justice opposing the invocation of GO 123," Murthy said.