Bombay High Court Directs to Speed Up Godrej and Boyce Compensation Process

Bombay High Court Directs to Speed Up Godrej and Boyce Compensation Process

The Bombay High Court by its division bench comprising of Justices R.D. Dhanuka and M.M. Sathaye while hearing the writ petition filed in the matter of Godrej and Boyce Manufacturing Company Limited vs. Union of India and others, directed the State Land Acquisition Officer (for short SLAO) to hear and expediate the acquisition and compensation computation process for the company's 248 square meter land given for urgent construction of new foot over bridge (in short FOB) following the 29th September, 2017 stampede at Currey Road (hereinafter referred Elphinstone Road) that had claimed 23 lives.

The bench disposed of the mater in asserting the need for expeditious completion of the acquisition process. The aftermath of the fatal stampede which took place in October 2017, the company had granted its land for the urgent construction of a new FOB on the request of the Bombay Municipal Corporation (hereinafter referred to as BMC) and Railways.

The background of the case is that the company/petitioner- Godrej, one of Mumbai's largest private land owners had filed a petition before the Bombay High Court in December 2022. Senior counsel Navroz Seervai and Bachubhai Munim representing the company contended five years on that, the company was made to "run pillar to post'' with no sight of final compensation. The company stated that its possession of its land was taken nearly five years ago citing extreme urgency and having utilised the property for construction of the FOB, Railways, BMC and the state are not taking any steps to compensate it, under law. It also alleged that it had temporarily given a separate 242 square meter plot and on 28 November, 2017 observing the public interest made available for free its go-down to accommodate Army personnel who were to construct the new FOB.

Assistant government pleader Himanshu Takke, submitted that private negotiations had taken place earlier between BMC, Godrej and Railways. On its failure, BMC forwarded a proposal to initiate the land acquisition under the Act and the SLAO on 26 August, 2022 issued a notification to start the process by requesting the BMC to deposit Rs 1.2 crore as thirty per cent of the proposed award amount.

Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh for the Centre and Railways retaliated that it had already deposited over Rs 5.2 crore with the BMC in 2018 and nothing could be asked of it now. The BMC lawyer said the acquisition was for the Railways and it had no role in the compensation.

The Court after recording the submissions observed that, the authority under the provisions of the Act of 2013 is thus not required to ask for further deposit from the Municipal Corporation at this stage.

The High Court lastly held, "it is however, made clear that while making the final award, if any further amount is required to be deposited by the Municipal Corporation with the authority, upon raising a demand by the authority from the Municipal Corporation and upon raising a demand by the Municipal Corporation from the Railway, such amount shall be deposited as per the provisions of the said Act of 2013. In view of the fact that the notification under Section 19 is already issued by the authority, the authority is directed to take further steps to complete the acquisition proceedings and to make an award expeditiously and within the time prescribed under the provisions of the Act of 2013," while allowing the writ petitions.