Time to halt forceful acquisition of land

The Hindu

2 days ago

For more than 1,100 days, farmers of 13 villages near Channarayapatna in Devanahalli taluk, Bengaluru Rural district, have been agitating against the 'forceful' acquisition of their land by the Karnataka government for industrial development.
In 2022, the Basavaraj Bommai government notified 1,777 acres off land for a proposed hi-tech defence and aerospace park. This highly fertile region is the lifeline of Bengaluru's food and nutrition security.
The farmers immediately took to the streets, demanding that the plan be dropped. They rejected offers of compensation and promises to drop part of the acquisition. The farmers say they want to continue farming and remain on their land that have sustained lives and livelihoods for generations. Their persistent struggle has not only brought them into national focus, but has also foregrounded the legitimacy of forcible land acquisition.
Over the past month, this agitation has taken an intense turn. On June 25, a 'Devanahalli Chalo (let's go to Devanahalli)' programme was organised, and various farmer, trade union, Dalit, student, and women's organisations came together to show solidarity with the farmers. The use of police force in dispersing the protesters only intensified the agitation under the aegis of Samyukta Horata Karnataka. Facing intense pressure, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah called a meeting on July 4 and requested time to take a decision. He argued that there were legal hurdles in going back on land acquisition. This is an exercise in obfuscation since the power of the State government to withdraw from the land acquisition process is legally settled. Nevertheless, the farmers have heeded his request and are awaiting his decision.
Before elaborating on this, it is necessary to mention that forcible acquisition, premised on the principle of eminent domain, is a colonial relic and has no place in a democracy. It is for this reason that informed consent found a place in the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. However, despite this enactment, there are many State expropriation laws that remain on the statute books. These are used indiscriminately to acquire people's lands. Despite several demands, the Karnataka government has shown no inclination in scrapping these laws.
The lands of the Devanahalli farmers have been acquired under one such law — the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Act, 1966. To date, lakhs of acres of agricultural land have been acquired under this statute for establishing industrial areas and for allotting them to individual companies. There is overwhelming evidence that acres of acquired land are lying waste. The Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India on the economic sector for the year ending March 2017 confirmed this. The disastrous nature of forcible acquisition stands exposed, yet the State government is yet to undertake a comprehensive review of the status of all acquired lands.
The answer to the question of withdrawal from land acquisition proceedings can be found in the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Act. Section 4 allows the State government to exclude acquired land at any time it deems necessary. This flows from the settled legal position that the State can exercise its power of withdrawal from land acquisition unilaterally. Indeed, with regard to acquisition under the 1966 Act, the Karnataka High Court, in Thomas Patrao Since Deceased by his LR and Anr. vs. State of Karnataka, 2005, held that the State government can cancel land acquisition notifications before taking possession by virtue of its power under Section 21 of the Karnataka General Clauses Act, 1899. The unambiguous position is that the State government can withdraw the Devanahalli land from acquisition by cancelling the preliminary and final land acquisition notifications.
Incidentally, this is a power that successive State governments have exercised. Acquisition of hundreds of acres of notified lands were withdrawn on various counts including farmers' resistance, so the Siddaramaiah government has no real reason to seek time. Instead, it must listen to the demand of the farmers and drop the land acquisition. Else, talk of democracy and social justice will remain hollow words.
Clifton D' Rozario is a practicing advocate in the Karnataka High Court and the General Secretary of the All India Lawyers Association for Justice