Landowners Get Compensation At Par Despite 2,044-Day Appeal Delay, But No Statutory Benefits Or Interest For Delay: P&H HC

In brief

The question

1. Whether the 2,044-day delay in filing the land-acquisition appeal should be condoned.

The court held

The Court allowed the application and condoned the 2,044-day delay, subject to the condition that the appellants would not receive statutory benefits or interest for the delayed period.

It also directed

It allowed the appeal in terms of the judgment in RFA-2208-2019 and expressly excluded interest for the 2,044-day delay and statutory benefits.

01Facts

The appellants sought condonation of a 2,044-day delay in filing an appeal under Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, attributing the delay to their previous counsel.

p. 1

Their reference petition had been dismissed by the Additional District Judge, Rohtak, by award dated 5 December 2018.

p. 7

They contended that their claim was covered by the High Court’s judgment in RFA-2208-2019 dated 10 April 2026; the State conceded that the claim was covered, while submitting that statutory benefits and interest should not be payable for the delayed period.

p. 1, 7

02Issues

i.1. Whether the 2,044-day delay in filing the land-acquisition appeal should be condoned.

pp. 1, 7–8

ii.2. Whether the appellants, despite the delay, were entitled to statutory benefits and interest for the delayed period.

pp. 1–4, 7–8

iii.3. Whether the appellants’ appeal should be allowed in terms of the judgment in RFA-2208-2019.

p. 7

03Law Applied

Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 provides for an appeal from an award in a land-acquisition reference.

p. 7

In New Okhla Industrial Development Authority v. Rameshwar @ Ramesh Chandra Sharma, 2022 SCC OnLine SC 1599, the Supreme Court held that delay in land-acquisition appeals may be condoned and enhanced compensation granted, but the acquiring body should not be made liable for statutory benefits and interest attributable to the delayed period.

pp. 2–3

In Suresh Kumar v. State of Haryana, 2025 SCC OnLine SC 896, the Supreme Court endorsed a liberal, justice-oriented approach to condonation in land-acquisition matters, while recognising that interest need not be payable for the period of delay.

pp. 3–4

Urban Improvement Trust v. Vidhya Devi, 2024 SCC OnLine SC 3725, cautioned against hyper-technical treatment of delay where property rights and substantial justice are at stake.

pp. 5–6

Provisions in the judgment · 1

Land Acquisition Act, 1894 Section 54

04Reasoning

The Court treated the matter as a land-acquisition appeal and, applying the Supreme Court’s liberal approach to delay, concluded that the delay should not defeat the appellants’ claim to compensation.

pp. 5–8

At the same time, following New Okhla Industrial Development Authority and Suresh Kumar, it balanced that relief against the public acquiring body’s interest by denying statutory benefits and interest for the delayed period.

pp. 2–4, 7–8

Since the State conceded that the appellants’ claim was covered by RFA-2208-2019, the Court allowed the appeal on that basis.

p. 7

05Holding

The Court allowed the application and condoned the 2,044-day delay, subject to the condition that the appellants would not receive statutory benefits or interest for the delayed period.

p. 8

It allowed the appeal in terms of the judgment in RFA-2208-2019 and expressly excluded interest for the 2,044-day delay and statutory benefits.

p. 7

LawLens.Punjab and Haryana High Court

Original Court PDF