HC orders NHAI to pay ₹25 lakh for wrongful land possession

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Thursday directed the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to pay ₹25 lakh to a landowner for wrongfully taking possession of 550 sq metres of his land in 2018 — though only 50 sq metres had been officially acquired — due to an error in the joint measurement sheet during acquisition proceedings dating back to 2012.

The division bench of Justice M S Sonak and Justice Jitendra Jain was hearing a petition filed by Rahul Rathi, who moved court after repeated letters to the authority went unanswered.

In a sworn affidavit (a written statement made under oath), Swati Thavil, deputy commissioner (Acquisition), NHAI, admitted that due to a clerical error, the actual area acquired was understated. The joint measurement sheet recorded only 50 sq metres instead of the actual 550 sq metres, leading to a shortfall of 500 sq metres in compensation.

Taking note of the admission and the prolonged delay in addressing the error, the court said, “A writ is liable to be issued directing the respondents to initiate immediate steps to acquire the additional 500 sq metres of the petitioner’s land and compensate him in accordance with law.”

While NHAI assured the court it would initiate acquisition proceedings under the National Highways Act, 1956, the bench noted that no timeline had been proposed.

The judges, emphasising the prolonged inaction, ordered the authority to complete the acquisition process within one year and compensate the petitioner ₹25 lakh within two months of the order being uploaded.

“The petitioner cannot be made to wait indefinitely,” the bench observed. “In 2018, the compensation for 50 sq metres of land was fixed at ₹1,83,150, or ₹3,663 per sq metre. At that rate, the additional 500 sq metres would amount to ₹18.31 lakh. Adding 6% annual interest, the compensation due would be around ₹25 lakh.”

The court also acknowledged the transparency shown by NHAI officials, including Thavil and authorised representative Yashwant Patil, for placing the facts before the bench “fairly and in good faith.”