Man seeking relief against acquired land digs up portion of old NH-73
YAMUNANAGAR: Traffic on old National Highway 73 was disrupted on Saturday as a farmer, fighting for compensation against a portion of his ancestral land that was acquired by the government 67 years ago, dug up a 30-metre stretch on the outskirts of Jagadhri city in protest.
The farmer, identified as Kashmir Singh Dhillon, 47, of Khera village in Yamunanagar district, said the government had acquired the land belonging to his grandfather in 1951 for highway construction but not paid any compensation for it.
“In 2002, my uncle and I filed a case to reclaim the land as we had not got any compensation. In October this year, Jagadhri additional district and sessions judge Sunil Kumar gave an order for implementation of the 2014 verdict, which stated that the government will have to pay compensation for the land,” said Dhillon, adding, “I waited for around 40 days for the district administration to provide compensation but no avail.” He added that if he doesn’t get the compensation amount within two days, he will block the road, which covers his field.
Meanwhile, Yamunanagar deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Randhir Singh, along with his team, reached the spot and diverted the traffic through the fields. Deputy commissioner Girish Arora said he will meet district officials to establish the price of the land, for which Dhillon is claiming compensation.