Authority: Supreme Court of India, Civil Appellate Jurisdiction (Bench: CJI Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, Justice Vipul M. Pancholi)

Order Date: 21 July 2026

Case Overview

  • Petitioners: M/S Sri Balaji Corporate Services & Anr.; Respondents: Dr. S Selvakumar & Ors. (alleged contemnors).
  • The petitioners' land was acquired by Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) and handed to Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) for the Bangalore Metro project.
  • Dispute: Whether compensation must be determined under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (“2013 Act”) despite the acquisition being under the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Act, 1966 (KIADA).
  • An interim order dated 09‑02‑2024 directed that acquisition proceedings continue and the award be passed per the 2013 Act. KIADB issued an award dated 28‑11‑2022, which respondents claim complies with the 2013 Act.
  • Petitioners allege: (i) the award does not meet statutory requirements of the 2013 Act; (ii) their application for reference under Section 64 of the 2013 Act has not been forwarded to the Reference Court; (iii) TDS was deducted from the compensation amount.

Court Reasoning and Directions

  • The first grievance can be addressed by the Reference Court, which may modify the award if the 2013 Act provisions are not complied with.
  • Regarding the second grievance, the Court found no justification for the Land Acquisition Collector‑cum‑Officer to retain the reference applications for almost three years and directed the State of Karnataka, its Land Acquisition Collector‑cum‑Officer, and KIADB to forward all pending reference applications to the jurisdictional Reference Court within four weeks of receipt of this order.
  • Concerning the TDS deduction, the Court held that since the acquisition is deemed to have been made under the 2013 Act (per the earlier interim order), Section 96 of the 2013 Act prohibits TDS deduction. The amount deducted as TDS must be reimbursed to the affected farmers no later than six weeks from the date of this order.

Final Outcome

  • The contempt proceedings (Contempt Petition No. 194/2026) are disposed of in the terms of the signed order.
  • Pending applications, if any, shall stand closed after compliance with the above directions.

Topics: Land Acquisition, Compensation, TDS