Section 61 and 62 of Land Acquisition Act 2013: Judicial Proceedings and Public Servants

Sections 61 and 62 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 deal with the legal character of proceedings before the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Authority and the status of its Member and officers.

Updated for the current criminal law framework in force from 1 July 2024.

Section 61 - Proceedings before Authority to be judicial proceedings

Meaning and effect of Section 61

Section 61 gives proceedings before the Authority the character of judicial proceedings for the specified criminal-law purposes. Under the provision as enacted, the cross-references are to Section 193 IPC, concerning punishment for false evidence in a judicial proceeding, and Section 228 IPC, concerning intentional insult or interruption to a public servant sitting in a judicial proceeding.

The section also deems the Authority to be a civil court for the purposes of Sections 345 and 346 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. Those provisions dealt with the procedure for specified contempt-like offences committed in the view or presence of a court and the procedure where the court considered that the matter should not be dealt with summarily.

Current BNS and BNSS context

For the current criminal law framework, the corresponding subject matter is found principally in Section 229 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which punishes giving or fabricating false evidence in a judicial proceeding, and Section 267 BNS, which deals with intentional insult or interruption to a public servant sitting in a judicial proceeding.

The procedural counterparts of former Sections 345 and 346 CrPC are Sections 384 and 385 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. Section 384 provides the procedure in certain cases of contempt committed in the view or presence of a Civil, Criminal or Revenue Court, while Section 385 applies where the Court considers that the case should not be dealt with under Section 384.

Section 62 - Members and officers of Authority to be public servants

Meaning and effect of Section 62

Section 62 expressly gives the Member and officers of the Authority the legal status of public servants for the purpose stated in the 2013 Act. The provision was enacted by reference to Section 21 IPC, which defined the expression "public servant" by specifying categories of persons treated as public servants under criminal law.

Because the Indian Penal Code has been replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the present application of the cross-reference must be considered with the new criminal law and the relevant repeal and savings provisions. The deeming provision in Section 62 remains important when determining the legal character and official functions of persons serving the Authority.

Why Sections 61 and 62 matter

• Truthfulness of evidence: Proceedings before the Authority are treated as judicial proceedings for the statutory purposes specified in Section 61.
• Order and dignity of proceedings: The provision protects the functioning of the Authority against specified forms of intentional insult or interruption.
• Court-like procedural powers: For the limited purposes identified by Section 61, the Authority is deemed to be a civil court.
• Official status: Section 62 places the Member and officers of the Authority within the statutory public-servant framework.

Related provision: Section 60

Section 60 complements Sections 61 and 62. It gives the Authority specified powers of a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, including summoning persons, examining them on oath, requiring discovery and production of documents, receiving affidavit evidence, requisitioning public records, issuing commissions and reviewing its decisions, directions and orders. The Authority is guided by principles of natural justice and may regulate its own procedure subject to the Act and rules.

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