State adds to pangs of development

Out Of Court

 Land acquisitions for public purposes are often caught in prolonged legal battles as the court found in the recent case, Pratibha Nema vs State of MP, where a diamond park scheme was delayed for years.

 The court then asked the authorities to follow the acquisition rules strictly to avoid such delays, which discourage investors. That was a case where powerful landlords could pick legal holes in the procedure.

 Now, the Supreme Court has delivered a judgement in which the acquiring authorities bulldozed the rights of the poor and the illiterate in their enthusiasm to speed up an industrial project. The result was the same