Singur Act upheld by High Court

Operation stayed till early November; Mamata says return of land to begin then; Tatas may appeal.

The high court here has upheld the validity of the Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Act, in a victory on Wednesday for West Bengal chief minister, Mamata Banerjee and a blow against Tata Motors.

It was enacted in June and revoked the entire leasing agreement leasing 997 acres of land in Hooghly district to Tata Motors for its Nano car factory and allied ancillary units’ complex. The project was withdrawn by the Tatas and shifted to Gujarat, but the land remained as it was when they withdrew. The new law had vested the entire land with the state government. The Tatas challenged it the day after it was passed.

The Act and the rules framed to give effect to it, declared judge I P Mukherjee in a 51-page cerdict, were “held to be constitutional and valid. So is any action taken by the state, thereunder.”

“It is a victory for the people of Singur,” Banerjee said about the verdict. It came the same day she formally won a place in the legislative assembly by a record margin.

Tata Motors may appeal against the verdict. “The company will study the judgement and decide its next course of action,” went a statement it issued. And, distribution of land to Singur’s “unwilling” land losers is anyway not going to happen immediately. The judge stayed operation of Wednesday’s judgement till November 2; the court will be breaking for vacation shortly.

“We will wait for the status quo to get over and then start distributing the land. All the documents are ready,” Banerjee said, reiterating that 600 acres would be used for an industrial project and the balance would be returned to the “unwilling” land losers. Also, the case of the “willing” land losers, who are also challenging the Act, and the vendors, is likely to be taken up after the vacation. “We will also seek a stay on distribution of land till our case is heard,” their counsel said.

Tata Motors had said revocation of the lease agreement between it and the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation was unconstitutional. In his judgement, the judge has prescribed compensation guidelines for Tata. “Although there is an intention expressed by the legislature to pay compensation, the intention expressed is vague and uncertain. Therefore, this court has made an interpretation of this provision in the foregoing part of this judgement,” he has said.
 

FACE-OFF

May18, 2006 Tata Motors announces first plant for small car to come up in West Bengal

July 18, 2006 Mamata sowed paddy near Singur as sign of protest

Jan 21, 2007 Tata Motors begins initial steps for construction of small car plant in West Bengal

Dec 19, 2007 Tata Motors announces launch of Nano at Delhi auto expo 

Jan 18, 2008 Calcutta High Court upholds Singur land acquisition-says it is legal

Feb 15, 2008 Tatas announce first Nano to be rolled out of Singur by October

Aug 24, 2008 Mamata Banerjee starts dharna at Singur

Sep 2, 2008 Tata Motors suspends work at Nano plant

Sep 5, 2008 Bengal government and TMC start negotiations

Sep 7, 2008 Talks break down

Oct 3, 2008 Tata Motors decides to move out of Singur

Oct 7, 2008 Tata Motors announces new Nano Plant in Sanand, Gujarat

Sep 1, 2009 Ratan Tata raises the issue of compensation with the Bengal government

May 20, 2011 Mamata Banerjee sworn in as Bengal CM

June 9, 2011 Passes an ordinance, takes over 997 acres, citing non-performance by Tatas

June 10, 2011 Bengal govt goes back on ordinance

June 14, 2011 Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Bill, 2011 passed in the legislative assembly

June 22, 2011 Tata Motors moves Calcutta HC 

June 29, 2011 SC directed Bengal not to return land at Singur till further order from Calcutta HC

Sep 28, 2011 HC declares Singur Act valid, but order stayed till November 2

According to this interpretation, compensation is to be awarded by applying the principles for award of compensation in Sections 23 and 24 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, deemed to be in the Act. The compensation will have to be determined by the district judge within six months of Tata Motors' application.

The Left Front, which bagged the project in its earlier term in the government, on Wednesday said Tata should compensate the state for pulling out from the project, while also maintaining that the Singur Act was unconstitutional and the entire land should be returned to the land losers. “The state government should appeal against the compensation provision,” said the leader of the opposition in the legislative assembly, Surjya Kanta Mishra.