Bihar
,
Rajeev Nagar
,
Patna
Published : 12 July, 2014   |   Last updated - 24 Jun, 2024
Bihar Farmers Form Groups, Protest Against Delayed Compensation for Digha Housing Colony
Reported by
Aditi Patil
Legal Review by
Anmol Gupta
Updated by
Anupa Kujur
Households affected
330
People Affected
1974
Year started
415
Land area affected
Households affected
330
People Affected
1974
Year started
415
Land area affected
Key Insights
Sector
Infrastructure
Reason/Cause of conflict
Township/Real Estate
Conflict Status
Ongoing
Ended
Legal Status
Region Classification
Urban
Ended
1
Summary

In 1974, the Bihar State Housing Board (BSHB) decided to acquire 1,024.52 acres of land in present Rajeev Nagar in Patna for the proposed Digha Housing Colony. As per the land acquisition law of that time, the farmers were to get Rs 2,200 per 1,360 square feet, but many farmers' lands were acquired without paying them due compensation. The farmers who did not receive the compensation protested against the government's decision to unreasonably leave them out of the compensation scheme and refused to give up their land. Meanwhile, BSHB had deposited Rs 17.42 crore in the account of the district collector of Patna towards the acquisition of land.
Of the 1,024.52 acres of land that was to be developed by the BSHB, around 600 acres were sold by the erstwhile owners or farmers to other parties, making it challenging for the Board to execute the project. This also created a mess over the ownership of land among the original landowners, allotees and occupants.
To resolve the dispute, the Bihar government enacted a law on April 20, 2010. The state Cabinet subsequently approved the Digha Land Acquisition Settlement Rules and Scheme, 2014, fixing the compensation rate, but the landowners were not convinced and maintained that their land had not been acquired by the government.
Chandramunshi Singh, one of the founding members of the Digha Krishi Bhumi Awas Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, formed to protest against the Settlement Rules, is quoted in a news report as saying: "The government's land acquisition process in the disputed area was never completed, so we still own the land."
In 2017, the Bihar chief secretary instructed the BSHB to construct a boundary wall around 400 acres of the disputed land. They faced violent protests by the locals. In November that year, members of the Akhil Bharatiya Baad Sukhad Pidit Sangarsh Morcha, an organisation protesting the land acquisition in Digha, agitated for almost a month, demanding adequate compensation for the farmers. According to a survey report of 1994, there are 330 applicants for compensation.
As per the Settlement Rules, the 600 acres of land on the eastern side of Ashiana-Digha Road on which new new houses were built would be regularised after the payment of a settlement charge, while the remaining 400 acres on the western side of the road will be acquired by the housing board for its own projects. The farmers and residents living on this side have opposed the proposal.
In January 2019, violence erupted between alleged miscreants and the administration during an anti-encroachment drive, in which a dozen cops were injured. The drive was conducted by the Patna district administration in association with Patna Police to hand over six acres of land to the Board. The land was to be acquired to set up offices of Sashastra Seema Bal and the Central Board of Secondary Education.
In January 2021, farmers under the banner of Digha Krishi Bhumi Awas Bachao Sangharsh Samiti announced that they will be campaigning soon in a phased manner to free the Digha land and were looking forward to meet former Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha, along with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. They continue to reject occupancy on the land and demand compensation at the current rate.

In July 2022, 75 houses were completely demolished and 20 were partially demolished by the administration in Nepali Nagar colony to acquire 1024.25 acres of state housing board's land in Digha. During this time, apart from about 500 policemen, 25 to 30 officers were also present.

The Patna High Court, in its oral observation, held the Housing Board responsible for the illegal occupation of the colony's land and directed to present the list of names and tenures of all MDs and chief officers who have been in the Housing Board in the last 25 years. The court also asked for the list of all the SHOs posted in Rajiv Nagar police station.

Abhishek Singh, a local resident, told the Navbharat Times said that the colony or the house was not built in a day. "All the officers kept selling the land by taking money. When electricity and water connections were being given, neither any officer nor SHO came."

2
Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Demand for promised compensation

Refusal to give up land for the project

Complaint against procedural violations

Demand for more compensation than promised

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban

Type of Land

Private

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Project underway despite protests

Original Project Deadline

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Agricultural land

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Source/Reference

Total investment involved (in Crores):

Type of investment:

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Author
Reported by
Aditi Patil

Bihar

Kumar Sambhav is a social entrepreneur and award-winning journalist, leading innovative research in accountability investigations. He is the founder of Land Conflict Watch and is currently working as India Research Lead with Princeton University’s Digital Witness Lab.

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Fact sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Demand for promised compensation

Refusal to give up land for the project

Complaint against procedural violations

Demand for more compensation than promised

Bihar Farmers Form Groups, Protest Against Delayed Compensation for Digha Housing Colony

Reported by

Aditi Patil

Legal Review by

Edited by

Anupa Sagar Kujur

Updated by

Updated by

Rahul Kumar Gaurav

Published on

September 10, 2019

July 15, 2024

Edited on

September 10, 2019

Sector

Infrastructure

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Township/Real Estate

Starting Year

1974

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

415

ha

Households Affected by Conflict

People Affected by Conflict

330

State

Bihar

Sector

Infrastructure

People Affected by Conflict

330

Households Affected by Conflict

Land Area Affected (in Hectares)

415

ha

Starting Year

1974

Location of Conflict

Rajeev Nagar

Patna

Reason or Cause of Conflict

Township/Real Estate

Land Conflict Summary

In 1974, the Bihar State Housing Board (BSHB) decided to acquire 1,024.52 acres of land in present Rajeev Nagar in Patna for the proposed Digha Housing Colony. As per the land acquisition law of that time, the farmers were to get Rs 2,200 per 1,360 square feet, but many farmers' lands were acquired without paying them due compensation. The farmers who did not receive the compensation protested against the government's decision to unreasonably leave them out of the compensation scheme and refused to give up their land. Meanwhile, BSHB had deposited Rs 17.42 crore in the account of the district collector of Patna towards the acquisition of land.
Of the 1,024.52 acres of land that was to be developed by the BSHB, around 600 acres were sold by the erstwhile owners or farmers to other parties, making it challenging for the Board to execute the project. This also created a mess over the ownership of land among the original landowners, allotees and occupants.
To resolve the dispute, the Bihar government enacted a law on April 20, 2010. The state Cabinet subsequently approved the Digha Land Acquisition Settlement Rules and Scheme, 2014, fixing the compensation rate, but the landowners were not convinced and maintained that their land had not been acquired by the government.
Chandramunshi Singh, one of the founding members of the Digha Krishi Bhumi Awas Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, formed to protest against the Settlement Rules, is quoted in a news report as saying: "The government's land acquisition process in the disputed area was never completed, so we still own the land."
In 2017, the Bihar chief secretary instructed the BSHB to construct a boundary wall around 400 acres of the disputed land. They faced violent protests by the locals. In November that year, members of the Akhil Bharatiya Baad Sukhad Pidit Sangarsh Morcha, an organisation protesting the land acquisition in Digha, agitated for almost a month, demanding adequate compensation for the farmers. According to a survey report of 1994, there are 330 applicants for compensation.
As per the Settlement Rules, the 600 acres of land on the eastern side of Ashiana-Digha Road on which new new houses were built would be regularised after the payment of a settlement charge, while the remaining 400 acres on the western side of the road will be acquired by the housing board for its own projects. The farmers and residents living on this side have opposed the proposal.
In January 2019, violence erupted between alleged miscreants and the administration during an anti-encroachment drive, in which a dozen cops were injured. The drive was conducted by the Patna district administration in association with Patna Police to hand over six acres of land to the Board. The land was to be acquired to set up offices of Sashastra Seema Bal and the Central Board of Secondary Education.
In January 2021, farmers under the banner of Digha Krishi Bhumi Awas Bachao Sangharsh Samiti announced that they will be campaigning soon in a phased manner to free the Digha land and were looking forward to meet former Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha, along with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. They continue to reject occupancy on the land and demand compensation at the current rate.

In July 2022, 75 houses were completely demolished and 20 were partially demolished by the administration in Nepali Nagar colony to acquire 1024.25 acres of state housing board's land in Digha. During this time, apart from about 500 policemen, 25 to 30 officers were also present.

The Patna High Court, in its oral observation, held the Housing Board responsible for the illegal occupation of the colony's land and directed to present the list of names and tenures of all MDs and chief officers who have been in the Housing Board in the last 25 years. The court also asked for the list of all the SHOs posted in Rajiv Nagar police station.

Abhishek Singh, a local resident, told the Navbharat Times said that the colony or the house was not built in a day. "All the officers kept selling the land by taking money. When electricity and water connections were being given, neither any officer nor SHO came."

Fact Sheet

Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Demand for promised compensation

Refusal to give up land for the project

Complaint against procedural violations

Demand for more compensation than promised

Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community

Region Classification

Urban

Type of Land

Private

Type of Common Land

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)

Status of Project

Project underway despite protests

Original Project Deadline

Whether the Project has been Delayed

Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users

Agricultural land

Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict

Source/Reference

Total investment involved (in Crores):

Type of investment:

Year of Estimation

Page Number In Investment Document:

Has the Conflict Ended?

When did it end?

Why did the conflict end?

Legal Data

Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict

Land Acquisition Laws, Other, Central/State Government Policy

Legislations/Policies Involved

Digha Acquired Land Settlement Act, 2010
Preamble [Act passed in order to provide compensation and implement orders of the Supreme Court and High Court]; Section 2(a) ["Acquired land" means the land acquired by the Bihar State Housing Board in Digha]; Section 9 [Constitution of an authority to decide claims and settlement charges]; Section 5 [All previous allotments under any Act to be annulled]
Digha Land Acquisition Settlement Rules, 2014
Under this scheme, those occupying the acquired land are entitled to legitimisation of ownership on paying the government rate in instalments as provided in the scheme.
Land Acquisition Act, 1894
Section 6 [Declaration that land is being acquired for public purpose]; Section 31 [Payment of compensation upon making of award]; Section 34 [Payment of interest when compensation is not paid prior to taking possession of land]
Bihar State Housing Board Act, 1982
Section 49 [Power to acquire - land acquired under this Act shall be deemed to be for public purpose under the 1894 Land Acquisition Act]
Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013
Section 24(2) [Land acquisition proceedings under the 1894 Act shall be deemed to lapse if the state has not taken physical possession or paid the compensation within five years from the commencement of the 2013 LARR Act]
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Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute

What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?

What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?

Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:

Delay in compensation

Controversial land acquisition by the government

Non-payment of compensation/promised compensation

Incorrect estimation of compensation

Legal Status:

In Court

Status of Case In Court

Pending

Whether any adjudicatory body was approached

Name of the adjudicatory body

Name(s) of the Court(s)

Supreme Court of India, High Court of Bihar at Patna

Case Number

AIR 1984 SC 1767, C.W.J.C. No. 3991/ 1987, C.W.J.C. No.16533 of 2017

Main Reasoning/Decision of court

The land acquisition by the Bihar State Housing Board was challenged before the high court and upheld by the Supreme Court. Subsequently, upon the orders of the court, the state government enacted the Digha Acquired Land Settlement Act, 2010, to ascertain the claims by the allottees and landowners and the illegal occupants on the other hand. Pursuant to the enactment of the Act, the PIL pending before the high court was dismissed. The Act and the scheme thereunder was challenged before court, as all previous allotments had been cancelled. The allottees have subsequently individually filed cases before the court, some of which are pending.

Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:

Physical attack

Reported Details of the Violation:

In January 2019, violence erupted between alleged miscreants and the district administration during an anti-encroachment drive, in which a dozen cops were injured.

Date of Violation

Location of Violation

Additional Information

Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:

Bihar State Housing Board, Patna Police, Patna Municipal Corporation

PSUs Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?

Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached

Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:

Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?

Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:

Digha Krishi Bhumi Awas Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, Rajiv Nagar Vyavasaik Nyas, Akhil Bharatiya Baad Sukhad Pidit Sangarsh Morcha

Information on the use of criminal law

What was the action taken by the police?

How many people did the police detain or arrest?

What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?

Did the person face any violence while in police custody?

If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?

If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?

Legislation under which the accused was charged

Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?

In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?

Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?

Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?

Resources

Resources Related to Conflict

  • News Articles Related to the Conflict:
  • Documents Related to the Conflict:
  • Links Related to the Conflict:

Images

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