If farmer not paid relief in 3 weeks, train may go under the hammer

LUDHIANA:The Northern Railways may lose the already attached Swarna Shatabdi Express that runs between Amritsar and New Delhi for not compensating a farmer against his land acquired in 2007 for constructing the Ludhiana-Chandigarh rail line. The train was attached by a local court here a couple of days back.

In the resumed hearing on Saturday, the court additional district and sessions judge Jaspal Verma gave three weeks to the railways to pay the compensation (₹1.03 crore) to the farmer. Till then the train will remain court’s property. The next hearing is on April 7.

Advocate Rakesh Gandhi, who is representing farmer Sampuran Singh, moved an application in the court seeking auction of the Swarna Shatabdi for the recovery of the money that the railways failed to pay to his client. The court kept the decision on auction of the train pending till the next hearing.

On the other hand, the railways moved an application seeking three week’s time for paying the farmer and requested the court to stay the operation of the attachment of the train for three weeks. Heated arguments were exchanged in the court when the railway officials sought more time to pay ₹1.03 crore to the farmer. On Wednesday, the court had ordered attachement of the Swarna Shatabdi Express as the railways failed to comply with the court’s order issued in 2015 to clear the dues.