Court Blocks Unlawful Land Acquisition for Navi Mumbai Airport

The Bombay High Court struck down the urgent land acquisition by CIDCO and Maharashtra government for Navi Mumbai airport's ancillary work, citing lack of justification for bypassing rights of landowners in Vahal village. The court highlighted the violation of natural justice and called for lawful procedures.

The Bombay High Court has questioned the Maharashtra government and CIDCO for arbitrarily invoking an urgency clause to acquire land for the Navi Mumbai international airport's ancillary work. The court deemed the acquisition process illegal, quashing the Section 6 declaration under the Land Acquisition Act.

A bench of Justices M S Sonak and Jitendra Jain ruled that the authorities failed to justify bypassing the mandatory provision of Section 5A, which provides affected landowners the right to be heard. The bench emphasized the urgency clause should only be applied in cases of 'grave and real urgency'.

The court pointed to a lack of material evidence to substantiate the urgency and highlighted the fundamental rights of landowners for a meaningful hearing. CIDCO's defense of the acquisition's 'laudable purpose' was dismissed as technical. The authorities were directed to follow lawful procedures for any future acquisition.

(With inputs from agencies.)