Sections 5 and 5A of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894: Payment for Damage and Hearing of Objections

Section 5: Payment for damage caused during preliminary investigation

Section 5 operated in conjunction with the entry and survey powers under Section 4. Where an authorised officer entered land and necessary damage was caused by the activities permitted under Section 4, the officer was required, at the time of entry, to pay or tender payment for that damage.

The provision therefore paired the Government's preliminary survey powers with an express obligation to address necessary damage caused in exercising those powers.

Section 5A: Right to object to proposed acquisition

Section 5A applied where land had been notified under Section 4(1) as needed or likely to be needed for a public purpose or for a Company. A person interested in that land could object to acquisition of the land, or of land in the locality as applicable.

Thirty-day time limit

The objection could be made within 30 days from the date of publication of the Section 4(1) notification. The statutory time period therefore ran from the publication date determined under the preliminary-notification framework.

Who was a person interested for Section 5A?

Section 5A(3) provided that, for purposes of Section 5A, a person was deemed interested in land if that person would be entitled to claim an interest in compensation if the land were acquired under the Act. This should also be read with the general definition of "person interested" in Section 3.

Section 5A(2): Form, hearing and decision on objections

The objection procedure contained several distinct statutory steps:

1. Written objection: every objection under Section 5A(1) had to be made to the Collector in writing.
2. Opportunity of hearing: the Collector had to give the objector an opportunity to be heard in person, by a person authorised on the objector's behalf, or by a pleader.
3. Further inquiry: after hearing the objections, the Collector could make such further inquiry as considered necessary.
4. Collector's report: the Collector was to make a report concerning the notified land, or different reports for different parcels, containing recommendations on the objections.
5. Record of proceedings: the report and record of the proceedings held by the Collector were to be sent to the appropriate Government.
6. Government decision: the appropriate Government decided the objections; the statute stated that its decision on the objections was final.

The report under Section 5A was connected directly with the next stage of acquisition. Under Section 6, the appropriate Government considered the Section 5A report, where applicable, before reaching the statutory satisfaction required for a declaration that particular land was needed.

Relationship between Sections 4, 5, 5A and 6

The provisions formed a sequence in the ordinary acquisition process under the 1894 Act. Section 4 provided for preliminary notification and authorised preliminary investigation. Section 5 addressed necessary damage arising from that authorised entry. Section 5A created the objection and hearing process. Subject to the statutory scheme, Section 6 dealt with the declaration that particular land was required.

Current legal status

The Land Acquisition Act, 1894 is no longer the general Central land acquisition statute. It was repealed by Section 114 of the 2013 Act, subject to the saving framework. For an acquisition initiated under the former Act, the applicable transitional and saving provisions, the relevant dates and the procedural stage of the particular acquisition must be examined.