27 Years Later, Magdalla Farmers Win Big in Surat Airport Land Case

Surat | Gujarat — In a historic judgment that could reshape land acquisition disputes across Gujarat, the Gujarat High Court has delivered long-awaited relief to farmers of Magdalla village, nearly 27 years after their land was acquired for the expansion of Surat Airport. The ruling has sparked a wave of celebration among affected families, who had been battling for fair compensation for decades.

In a strong rebuke to the authorities, the High Court quashed the earlier decision of the Land Acquisition Officer, who had rejected farmers’ claims under Section 28(A) of the Land Acquisition Act on technical grounds. The court has now directed the officials to reconsider all applications within eight weeks, effectively reopening the door for enhanced compensation.

“The previous decision of the Land Acquisition Officer is not legally sustainable. The applications must be reconsidered promptly within the framework of law,” observed Justice Divyesh A. Joshi while delivering the verdict.

The dispute dates back to 1999, when land in Magdalla village was acquired for airport expansion. At the time, compensation was fixed at a mere ₹17 per square metre. However, in subsequent proceedings under Section 18, a civil court significantly enhanced the compensation to ₹203.50 per square metre for some farmers.

Many others, who could not approach the court in time, later sought parity under Section 28(A), which allows similarly placed landowners to claim equal compensation. However, their applications were rejected on the grounds that the dates of notification under Section 4 differed.

Rejecting this reasoning, the High Court made a crucial observation: “Farmers cannot be deprived of justice merely due to technical differences in notification dates when the purpose of acquisition and final award remain the same.”

Advocate Naseem G. Qadri, who represented the farmers from the civil court to the High Court, termed the verdict a “milestone.” He said, “This judgment restores faith in the justice system. Farmers who were denied their rightful dues now have a real chance to receive fair compensation.”

Legal experts believe the financial implications could be significant. For instance, a farmer owning 1,000 square metres of land could see a base compensation difference of over ₹1.86 lakh, which may further increase substantially with interest and solatium benefits.

The court’s directive now puts the onus on the Surat Land Acquisition Office to reassess each application and issue a supplementary award within the stipulated time frame. Once completed, the government will be required to disburse the additional compensation to eligible farmers.