Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Thursday dismissed Godrej & Boyce’s appeal against the acquisition of the Vikhroli plot for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. The court ruled that the bullet train project was important to the country.
The High Court said that there is no irregularity in this acquisition. It has been said that the bullet train is the dream project of the country and therefore it cannot be delayed for five years.
The High Court said, “The dispute has already delayed the project, it is not appropriate to go ahead.”
As a result, the PIL filed in the court was dismissed by the judges. The Bombay High Court also rejected the plea to postpone the verdict.
Godrej had opposed the deputy collector’s award on September 15, 2022 for the purchase of 39,252 square meters (9.69 acres) of corporate land for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project and compensation of Rs 264 crore. The corporation claimed that the sum was one. Small part of the initial offering of Rs 572 crore.
The main concern raised in the petition, however, was a notification dated August 20, 2019, which exempted the project from Section 10A of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, which requires social impact assessment. is required. assessment.
A provision of Section 25 of the Fair Compensation Act which allows the State to grant extension for issuance of award was also challenged as being unconstitutional.
Since 2019, Godrej and the government have been at loggerheads over the acquisition of land owned by the company. Of the 508.17 km train track connecting Mumbai and Ahmedabad, 21 km will be underground.
The area of Vikhroli is where one of the entrances to the underground tube is located (owned by Godrej). Godrej insisted that there were gross illegalities in the land acquisition proceedings, while the State accused Godrej of being responsible for a cost overrun of Rs. 1000 crores as a result of delay in the project.