Rights under Article 300A

The Supreme Court has elaborated on the scope and rights under Article 300- A of the Constitution of India in the case of Kolkata Municipal Corporation &Anr. Versus Vimal Kumar Shah & Others Civil Appeal No. 6466 of 2024 are the following-?

i) duty of the State to inform the person that it intends to acquire his property – the right to notice. A prior notice informing the bearer of the right that the State intends to deprive them of the right to property is a right in itself; a linear extension of the right to know embedded in Article 19(1)(a).

ii) the duty of the State to hear objections to the acquisition – the right to be heard. This right to be heard against the proposed acquisition must be meaningful and not a sham.

iii) the duty of the State to inform the person of its decision to acquire – the right to a reasoned decision. It is incumbent upon the authority to make an informed decision and communicate the same to the objector.

iv) the duty of the State to demonstrate that the acquisition is for public purpose – the duty to acquire only for public purpose. That the acquisition must be for a public purpose

is inherent and an important fetter on the discretion of the authorities to acquire. This requirement, which conditions the purpose of acquisition must stand to reason with the larger constitutional goals of a welfare state and distributive justice.

v) the duty of the State to restitute and rehabilitate – the right of restitution or fair compensation. A person’s right to hold and enjoy property is an integral part to the constitutional right under Article 300A.Deprivation or extinguishment of that right is permissible only upon restitution, be it in the form of monetary compensation, rehabilitation or other similar means. Compensation has always been considered to be an integral part of the process of acquisition.

vi) the duty of the State to conduct the process of acquisition efficiently and within prescribed timelines of the proceedings – the right to an efficient and expeditious process. The administration must be efficient, including in terms of process, and within a reasonable time. This obligation must necessarily form part of Article 300A.

vii) final conclusion of the proceedings leading to vesting – the right of conclusion. Upon conclusion of the process of acquisition and payment of compensation, the State takes possession of the property in normal circumstances. The culmination of an acquisition process is not only in the payment of compensation but also in taking over the actual physical possession of the land. If possession is not taken, and acquisition is not complete.

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