The government has not taken possession of land acquired since 2018. When the government initiated proceedings for the acquisition of our land some of the land owners filed a case against the acquisition. But due to receiving compensation they have withdrawn the case and filed an objection before the collector for increasing the amount of compensation. Upon hearing of the case the collector sent an requisition to the government to increase the amount of compensation. After three years we got the compensation. But still the government has not acquired the land. Can we claim the return of the acquired land because it has not been taken in possession of the government?
Although the landowners have received compensation, the government has not taken possession of the land. Consequently, it is not possible to request the cancellation of acquisition or the return of the land to the original owners.
Furthermore, the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and Resettlement Act, 2013 (LARR) does not consider the land to be lapsed once compensation has been received by the landholders.
Section 24 of the LARR Act explicitly states that the acquisition cannot be considered lapsed solely on the basis that the government has not taken possession of the land, provided that compensation has been paid to the landholders.