The Chhattisgarh High Court has upheld the land acquisition for an industrial power project operated by Adani Power Limited, overturning a 2025 single judge decision that had quashed the acquisition for one landowner in Raigarh district. A Division Bench led by Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Bibhu Datta Guru ruled that objections limited to compensation and rehabilitation benefits do not invalidate land acquisition proceedings under Section 5A of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.
The case arose from the acquisition of 1.417 hectares of land in Village Badebhandar, Raigarh, initiated in 2010 under the State’s power sector policy. The acquisition was completed with a final award in January 2011, possession was taken, and the power project became operational in 2013. The single judge had earlier set aside the acquisition for one landowner, citing improper consideration of objections under Section 5A.
Allowing the appeals filed by Adani Power Limited, the State of Chhattisgarh, and CSIDC, the Division Bench held that the landowner never challenged the public purpose or the acquisition itself. Instead, his objections related only to compensation, employment, and pollution concerns, which fall outside the limited scope of Section 5A. The Court emphasized that compensation disputes must be addressed under Sections 11 and 18 of the Act.
The Bench also relied on the long passage of time and the operational status of the power project, noting that courts should avoid unsettling concluded acquisitions where substantial public investment and infrastructure are already in place. Consequently, the Court restored the validity of the acquisition notifications and award, while allowing the landowner to pursue enhanced compensation through statutory remedies.
