HC asks Maha to verify claims of people under Resettlement Act

Hinting at "systematic fraud", the Bombay High Court today asked Maharashtra government to conduct an inquiry to ascertain veracity of the claims made by persons affected by development projects under the Resettlement Act.
"There appears to be a systematic fraud. The very purpose of terming a person as project affected and allotting him or her another cultivable land is defeated as these persons are selling off the land," a division Bench of Justices S C Dharmadhikari and Gautam Patel said.
The "fraud" was brought to light by additional government pleader Nitin Deshpande while opposing a contempt petition filed by one Laxman Mohan, a resident of Pune, claiming that despite high court order, the government was not allotting him land under the Resettlement Act.

"The Secretary of the Relief and Rehabilitation department of the government is looking into the fraud and an inquiry will be conducted," Deshpande told the court today.
"It is a welcome step that the government is looking into this. Dig deeper and conduct a general inquiry...Your (government's) own officers may be involved too. We expect the government to take the inquiry to its logical end," the court said.
The Bench directed the Secretary of the Relief and Rehabilitation department to appear before it on October 25.

Explaining the fraud, Deshpande said that before Maharashtra Resettlement of Project Displaced Persons Act came into force in 1976, the land had little market value and hence the project-hit people sought monetary compensation instead of plots for their land acquired by the state. They had even refused in writing to accept the land offered to them.

However, as real estate prices shot up in the recent times, displaced persons put up claims after many years asking for land while suppressing fact that they had accepted money as compensation.
As the state did not approve their claims, they moved the court seeking order to clear their case within a specified time. The court passed orders and when decisions were still not taken, contempt petitions were filed by claimants.