PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has declared illegal an order of Nowshera’s district collector (deputy commissioner) to de-notify an award announced around two decades ago for acquiring 3,413 acres of land in Nowshera district for establishing an artillery range.

A bench consisting of Justice Roohul Amin Khan and Justice Mohammad Nasir Mahfooz accepted five petitions filed by several Nowshera residents against the Oct 7, 2019, de-notification by the district collector under Section 48 of the Land Acquisition Act.

It ordered the land acquiring department i.e. Military Estate Office, Peshawar, to pay compensation to the landowners as fixed by the Supreme Court in its Feb 15, 2018, verdict.

In the detailed judgment, the bench ruled that the provisions of Section 48 of the Land Acquisition Act was wrongly invoked by the district collector and the impugned de-notification was issued without lawful authority.

Orders payment of compensation to landowners as fixed by SC

It added that the impugned de-notification had no legal backing except that the land acquiring department is not able to pay compensation to the landowners due to financial crisis.

Lawyers Yasir Khattak and Gulzar Ahmad Khan appeared for the petitioners and said the defence ministry had acquired land measuring around 18,680 acres in 12 areas of Nowshera for the purpose of establishing the Artillery Range/AFV Range through 12 separate awards on Apr 21, 1999.

They said the landowners from seven areas, including Nowshera Khurd, Manki Sharif, Pirpai, Spen Kare, Azakhel Payan, Amangarh and Badrashi, filed reference petitions under the Land Acquisition Act with the referee court, which ordered an increase in the compensation amount for the acquired land.

The counsel said the parties filed appeals with the high court, which dismissed the appeals of the acquiring department and accepted the petitioners’ on June 18, 2015, leading to an increase in the compensation amount to Rs12,000 per marla along with six per cent simple interest and 25 per cent compulsory acquisition charges.

They said the acquiring departments filed appeals with the Supreme Court, which dismissed them on Feb 15, 2018, while reducing the compulsory acquisition charges to 15 per cent.

The lawyers said for the execution of decree in their favour, the landowners filed execution petition with the Nowshera district judge but, in the meantime, the district collector issued the impugned de-notification.

In the de-notification, the DC had mentioned that the acquiring department had conveyed that the federal government (ministry of finance) had regretted to provide funds for paying compensation and called for de-notification and surrendering of the land to owners in seven areas.

The judgment authored by Justice Roohul Amin Khan read that the provisions of Section 48 of the Land Acquisition Act were intended to vest powers in the land acquisition collector to withdraw from acquisition of the land of which possession had not yet been taken.

It added that after taking possession, the land acquisition collector didn’t have mandate in the matter of acquisition and any action taken thereafter would amount to departure and deviation from the scheme of the Act.

“Bare reading of Section 48 of the Act will make it abundantly clear that the Land Acquisition Collector has no authority and power to withdraw from acquisition after taking possession of the land. In other words, the powers granted to the Land Acquisition Collector under Section 48 of the Act shall come to an end on taking possession of the land,” it read.

The bench observed that there was no cavil to the fact that possession of land remained with the respondents firstly on lease since 1955 and secondly due to the award announced in 1999.

Published in Dawn, July 1st, 2021