Supreme Court of India· 07 August 2026

Does extending parity of compensation under Article 142 also entitle claimants to interest for the period of their own delay in pursuing the claim?

LACHCHAPPA AND OTHERS v. SPECIAL LAND ACQUISITION OFFICER UKP, BAGALKOT AND OTHERS

2026 INSC 815
Coram: S.V.N. Bhatti; N.V. Anjaria

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Answer

No. The Court held that the appellants were not entitled to interest for the 4,427 days of delay attributable to their own conduct, even while extending them the enhanced principal rate of compensation.

Headnote

Land Acquisition Act, 1894 — s.4(1) — Constitution of India — Art. 142 — Parity of compensation — Delay — Constitution of India — Art. 142 — Parity across same notification — Held: Compensation for land under the same Notification had already been fixed at Rs. 6,50,000 per acre and approved by this Court. Exercising jurisdiction under Article 142, that rate is extended to the Appellants despite the abnormal delay in their own proceedings. (¶10) Land Acquisition Act, 1894 — Interest — Claimant's own delay excluded — Held further: No interest is payable for the 4,427 days of the Appellants' own delay. Civil Appeals allowed on that basis. (¶11, 12)

In the Court's own words

Paragraph 11The Appellants are not entitled to interest for the period from the date of the Reference Court's Judgment, i.e., 28.03.2001, to the date of filing the subject MFA before the High Court of Karnataka in 2008, and from the date of disposal of the subject MFA by the High Court on 24.06.2011 to the refiling of the SLPs before this Court, i.e., 27.01.2017, aggregating to 4,427 days. 3

Acts & Sections

Art. 142 Constitution of Indias.4(1) Land Acquisition Act, 1894s.18(1) Land Acquisition Act, 1894

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Also decided in this judgment

Under Article 142 of the Constitution, can the Supreme Court extend a higher rate of compensation already fixed for land under the same acquisition notification to claimants proceeding under a separate reference?

Plain-language answer prepared by the LexStreak Editorial Desk — verify against the judgment. Source: Supreme Court of India. Corrections