Lok Sabha takes up bill amending regulations for government acquiring property

New Delhi, Dec 19 (IANS) A bill to amend the regulations concerning compensation payable for acquisition of immovable property by the central government for public purpose was moved for passage in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

Moving The Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017, Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the amendment was being introduced specifically for defence and national security purposes.

The statement of objects and reasons of the bill states that there there have been instances of persons interested in the requisitioned property challenging the notice of acquisition on the ground that the same has been published without affording personal hearing to them by the competent authority.

It says that after prolonged litigation if the interested persons succeed in getting a notice of acquisition quashed, they would be bestowed with the unintended benefit of compensation for their property as on the date of publication of fresh notice of acquisition.

"This may cause astronomical hike in the quantum of compensation because of the inevitable appreciation of the market value of the property between the original date of publication of notice of acquisition and the present date of publication of the same, pursuant to the orders of the courts," it says.

The bill proposes to amend section 7 of The Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property Act, 1952 to enable the Central government to re-issue the notice of acquisition to the owner or such other person interested in the property, for the purpose of giving opportunity of being heard.

The owner or the person interested in the property shall also be entitled to annual rate of interest, prevalent at any relevant time on the compensation payable, from the date of publication of the first notice, till the final payment of compensation.