Rameshwar vs State Of Haryana

3. The relevant facts leading to the filing and disposal of the aforesaid writ petition were:-

(v) Even after issuance of notification under Section 6 of the Act, the builders/private entities continued approaching the landholders. It was submitted that the landholders were being shown Award Nos.7, 8, 9, 10 and 12, all passed on 09.03.2006 in respect of adjoining villages for the same purpose namely setting up of Chaudhary Devi Lal Industrial Township, 4 where compensation was awarded @ Rs.12.5 lakhs per acre. In all these cases, notifications under Section 4 were issued on 17.09.2004 while declarations under Section 6 were issued on 27.10.2004 and the lands covered under Award Nos. 7, 8, 9, 10 and 12 were i) 114 Kanals 02 Marlas,

ii) 68 Kanals 15 Marlas, iii) 43 Biswas, iv) 65 Kanals 08 Marlas and v) 3515 Kanals 01 Marlas respectively. It was submitted that the landholders were thus cornered with the prospect of impending acquisition and the idea that the compensation would be awarded @ Rs.12.5 lakhs per acre and were persuaded to enter into transactions with builders/private respondents transferring their holdings @ Rs.20-25 lakhs per acre.

(vi) On 02.08.2007 notices under Section 9 of the Act were issued calling upon the landholders to appear on 26.08.2007 for pronouncement of award. Soon after such notice, the builder/private entities started enhancing the price and bought the lands from the landholders at a price around Rs.80 lakhs per acre.

(vii) On 24.08.2007, the State Government passed an order dropping the acquisition and stating that a fresh notification would be issued in place of the present proceedings. The reasons given in the order dated 24.08.2007 were as under:

(xi) Around 22.09.2009, approvals of building plans of group housing societies and schemes of private builders came to be granted.

(xiv) The farmers’ agitation against the decision of the State Government favouring the builders was widely reported in newspapers on 01.03.2011. The agitation continued beyond August and September, 2011. On 20.09.2011 a request was made by sending communications to various functionaries for registration of FIR in respect of fraud played by the officials of the Land Acquisition Department as well as the Director, Town Planning in active connivance with the builders.

(xv) On 19.12.2011 the aforesaid Writ Petition No.23769 of 2011 was filed in the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh by 117 landholders. It was submitted that the entire action of initiating the acquisition and thereby compelling writ petitioners/landholders to divest their valuable and fertile land at throwaway prices under the threat of acquisition to certain private builders and then dropping the acquisition just two days before the date fixed for declaration of award was deliberate and was fraught with malice.

(xx) In their replications filed on 15.01.2013, it was submitted by the writ petitioners that most of the lands were purchased by the builders or their substitute companies after the issuance of the Notification under Section 4 of the Act and yet, the sale deeds executed between the parties made no mention of factum of such notification. Further, the escalation of prices in last 20 days namely after the issuance of the notices under Section 9 showed that the builders were not only aware but were also sure that the acquisition would be dropped by the State Government. The hike in price was 9 essentially to lure the landholders as after dropping of the acquisition there would be no threat to the landholders.

(xxii) Accordingly, on or about 21.03.2014 an additional affidavit was filed on behalf of State of Haryana giving relevant details in a tabular chart. These details appear to be in addition to the lands covered under Awards 7, 8, 9, 10 and 12 of 09.03.2006. The relevant tabular chart was as under:-

(xxiv) The aforesaid petition as well as connected matters were dismissed by the High Court vide its judgment under appeal. It was observed that the landholders had taken no action after their writ petitions were dismissed as infructuous by order dated 09.10.2007 and the present action initiated more than 4½ years after such dropping of acquisition was wholly belated. It was observed:

After hearing both sides this Court granted special leave on 06.10.2015 and continued the interim order granted earlier which was to injunct any further construction on the lands in question. This Court also recorded the submission of the Counsel for the State that investigation was entrusted to CBI and directed CBI to place its report before this Court, as and when the investigation was over. An interim report was filed by CBI in March, 2017. On 30.01.2017 Mr. C.A. Sundaram, learned Senior Advocate was appointed Amicus Curiae to assist the Court. The subsequent order dated 21.03.2017 records that the CBI had filed its interim report, a copy of which was directed to be given to the learned Amicus Curiae. The matters were thereafter taken up for hearing.

6. Learned Amicus Curiae initially filed a memo at which stage the interim report of CBI was not filed in Court. After said copy was made available to him pursuant to the Order dated 21.03.2017 he filed three more memos. In his memo dated 28.03.2017 after referring to certain factual aspects as emerging from the interim report of CBI, he submitted :-

e. The said amounts would be deposited and the landholders would be entitled to withdraw the amount representing the difference between what they actually received from the builders and what they were actually awarded.

8. Mr. Vikas Singh, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of respondent No.3 - ABW Infrastructure Limited filed an extensive list of dates and relevant material detailing various transactions under which his client came to purchase the lands in question. The transactions referred to in the list of dates and accompanying documents, put in tabular chart by us are as under:

12 16.12.05 M/s Jassum 5.422 Six (6) 2,36,38,295/- 43,59,700/-

The aforesaid chart discloses that the average price paid was initially in the region of Rs.25 lakhs per acre. Soon after the issuance of Section 6 declaration, the price rose to Rs.40 lakhs or above. But just before 24.08.2007 i.e. the date when the State Government decided to drop the acquisition, the price was in the region of Rs.80 lakhs per acre. The price paid after the decision to drop the proceedings was above Rs.1.2 crores per acre. The documents placed by Mr. Vikas Singh, learned Senior Advocate do indicate the names of vendors as well. However, for facility we have not included the names of vendors but have given the other details in the chart. The documents further indicate that all these lands purchased by the first purchasers as indicated in the tabular chart were then taken over by the respondent No.3; one of the ways being-where the controlling interest in the first purchaser Companies was transferred to Respondent No.3 and one Mr. Atul Bansal was appointed as Director of said companies. 23

11. On an inquiry by this Court regarding details of such amounts paid by respondent No.3 as indicated at Serial No.8, those documents were filed on record. The documents make an interesting reading. By way of sample, documents pertaining to transactions between Beeta Promoters P. Ltd. and the intending purchaser Arison Builders P. Ltd. are dealt with in some detail:

Ltd. = Vendee, certain lands were agreed to be sold @ Rs.58.60 lakhs per acre and cheque for Rs 1 lakh and Rs.1 lakh in cash were paid as advance. The relevant portion of the Agreement dated 09.10.2007 was as under:

3. That the said total settlement amount Rs.42,00,000/- (Forty two lakhs only) shall be paid on or before 31.03.2009 as per the schedule enclosed.

12. The details of the relevant agreements to sale and Settlement-cum- Cancellation agreements to sell as filed by respondent No.3 are put in a tabular chart by us. Except in the case at Serial No.1 where part of earnest money was deposited in cash, in all other cases, earnest was paid by cheques. However, in none of the cases any cheque which was issued as advance-cum-earnest money was encashed. The relevant recitals in these agreements are identical to those extracted hereinabove. The compensation 32 paid to the vendee in every case is on or about 30.08.2008 and at a consistent rate of Rs.3.50 crores per acre. The said chart is as under:

19. Though copies of the interim report of CBI were not given to the parties, some factual aspects dealt with in the report, namely the allegations in the FIR and certain bare minimum facts as found from the record, need to be adverted to. Paras 2 and 18 to 21of the Report were as under:-

(j) The material placed on record by Mr. Vikas Singh, learned Senior Advocate discloses a disturbing feature. The lands which were purchased for a price ranging from Rs.25 lakhs per acre soon after the initiation of acquisition which price rose to Rs.80 lakhs per acre just before dropping of the acquisition, were finally purchased by DLF Home Developers Ltd. at the rate of Rs.4½ crores per acre. Further, the fact that settlement money at the rate of Rs.3½ crores per acre was made over to entities which apparently had done nothing in the matter is quite shocking. Neither had these entities procured the lands from the original landholders nor were they ultimate developers who wanted to develop the property. Such entities can certainly be termed as “middle men” who walked away with tremendous amount of money or benefit at the rate of Rs.3½ crores per acre. Was that a mere bonanza or a deal denoting quid pro quo?

………..

33. Keeping the above in mind, we are of the view that ends of justice will be served by moulding the relief as follows:

32. We thus hold that:-

39. Having bestowed our attention to various competing elements and issues we deem it appropriate to direct:

The lands which were not transferred by the landholders during the period from 27.08.2004 till 29.01.2010 are not governed by these directions.

(c) Subject to the directions issued hereafter, the lands covered under aforementioned direction (b) shall vest in the HUDA/HSIDC, as may be directed by the State of Haryana, free from all encumbrances. HUDA/HSIDC may forthwith take possession thereof. Consequently all licences granted in respect of lands covered by the deemed Award dated 26.08.2007 will stand transferred to HUDA/HSIDC. 92

(d) Since the dropping of acquisition on 24.08.2007 and subsequent decision dated 29.01.2010 have been set aside, the period between 24.08.2007 and upto the date of this judgment shall not be counted for the purposes of Section 24(2) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.

(e) All transactions entered into during the period from 24.08.2007 till 29.01.2010, pursuant to which the original landholders transferred their holdings in favour of builders/private entities or third parties shall be subject to and the interest of the respective parties shall be governed by the directions issued hereafter.

(g) Consistent with the directions issued by this Court in Paragraphs 33.6 and 33.7 in Uddar Gagan (supra), the builders/private entities will be entitled to refund/reimbursement of any payment made to the landholders or the amounts that had been spent on development of the land, such payments shall be made by HUDA or HSIDC on being satisfied about the extent of actual expenditure not exceeding HUDA or HSIDC norms on the subject as the case may be. Refund will however be in respect of amount at which the landholders sold the land and not of subsequent sales. As regards subsequent transactions, the subsequent purchasers will have 94 remedies against their respective vendors. Claims of builders/private entities entitled to refund will be taken up after settling claims of third parties from whom the builders/private entities had collected monies. No interest will be payable on such amounts.

(h) The third parties from whom money had been collected by the builder/private entities will either be entitled to refund of the amount from and out of and to the extent of the amount payable to the builder/private entities in terms of above direction, available with the State, on their claims being verified or will be allotted the plots or apartments at the agreed price or prevalent price, whichever is higher. Every such claim shall be verified by HUDA or HSIDC. In cases where, constructions have been erected and the entire project is complete or is nearing completion, upon acceptance of the claim, the plots or apartments shall be made over to the respective claimants on the same terms and conditions. Except for such verified and accepted claims, the remaining area or apartments will be completely at the disposal of HUDA or HSIDC, as the case may be, which shall be free and competent to dispose of the same in accordance with the prevalent policy and procedure.

In order to facilitate such exercise all third parties who had purchased or had been allotted the plots or apartments shall prefer claims within one 95 month from today, which claim shall be verified within two months from today.

(j) If CBI has filed charge sheet before the concerned Court, the same may be dealt with as per law.

(k) The State shall give benefit of “Rehabilitation and Resettlement of Land Acquisition Oustees” policy of the State/HUDA/HSIDC to the 96 landholders. Area so required shall be reserved out of the acquired land itself.

41. The appeals stand allowed in the aforesaid terms. There shall be no order as to costs.