Federal Constitutional Court overturns another SC judgement

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Constitutional Court of Pakistan has overturned a Supreme Court of Pakistan (SC) ruling, as well as related decisions by the Lahore and Peshawar high courts, concerning compensation for land acquired for public purposes.

In a 45-page judgment written by Chief Justice Aminuddin Khan, the court ruled that landowners who had already accepted compensation at the time their land was acquired were not entitled to claim additional compensation later.

Justice Ali Baqar Najafi agreed with the judgment, while Justice Arshad Hussain issued a separate additional note.

The court held that compulsory acquisition of land must be accompanied by fair compensation in accordance with the law. It said it was the responsibility of the legislature to ensure that landowners were treated equally when compensation was determined.

The judgment said the role of the courts was to enforce the law. Justice Arshad Hussain, in his additional note, also expressed the view that amounts already paid as additional compensation should not be recovered.

While outlining the case, the court said that the case involved land acquired under the Land Acquisition Act of 1894 for a range of public projects, including defence schemes, educational institutions, grid stations and motorways.

After the initial compensation was determined and paid, some landowners approached the courts seeking an increase.

Landowners who had already accepted the original compensation then sought similar additional payments.

The High Courts issued rulings in favor of some of these landowners; however, the federal constitutional court has overturned all those judgments.