Lapse of acquisition for failure to pass award and pay compensation within reasonable time constitutes constitutional fraud.

The appellant, M/s Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers Association (IMTMA), a Section 8 company, established the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC).

After acquiring approximately 73 acres through government transfers and private purchases, IMTMA requested the State to acquire an additional 23 acres 38 guntas for a multi-level car parking facility.

Preliminary and final notifications were issued under Sections 28(1) and 28(4) of the Karnataka Industrial Area Development (KIAD) Act, 1966, respectively.

Landowners challenged the acquisition. A Single Judge bench partially upheld the acquisition for only 7 acres.

In the intra-court appeals, it was revealed that despite 14 years passing since the final notification, no award had been passed, and no compensation had been paid to the landowners.

The court applied the KIAD Act, 1966, specifically Section 28 regarding acquisition procedures and Section 29 regarding the mandatory obligation to pay compensation.

It relied on Article 300A of the Constitution of India, interpreting the right to property as a human right that cannot be deprived without the "authority of law".

The court cited K.T. Plantation Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Karnataka, establishing that "public purpose" is a precondition for deprivation of property.

Further, it applied Kolkata Municipal Corporation v. Bimal Kumar Shah, which identified seven sub-rights under Article 300A, including the right to an efficient process and fair compensation.

Finally, it applied the doctrine from Royal Orchid Hotels Ltd. v. G. Jayaram Reddy, which holds that acquiring land for public use only to transfer it to private beneficiaries constitutes a fraud on the power of eminent domain.

The court found that the "public purpose" requirement under the KIAD Act is intended for the orderly establishment of industrial areas, not for the expansion of a single private entity.

The court observed that IMTMA is a highly profitable venture capable of private acquisition, rendering the State's intervention a "colourable exercise of power" and a "fraud on the statute".

Procedurally, the court emphasized that while Section 28(5) vests land in the State upon notification, this power is fettered by the constitutional requirement of a "just, fair, and reasonable" process.

The 14-year delay in passing an award or paying compensation was deemed a violation of the right to property under Article 300A and the "right to an efficient and expeditious process".

The court concluded that the acquisition was not for a genuine public purpose but was masked for private gain.

The land acquisition proceedings had lapsed due to the 14-year delay in determining compensation.

The Court allowed the landowners' appeals and dismissed the appeals by KIADB and IMTMA, quashed the acquisition notifications in their entirety, and set aside the Single Judge's order; no costs were ordered.