Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co, the flagship company of the Mumbai-based Godrej Group, has told the Bombay High Court in an affidavit that the Rs 264 crore given as final compensation for the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project is a fraction of the initial amount of Rs 572 crore offered earlier. "There is non-application of mind while assessing the fair market value of the land in question," the company's affidavit read.
While refuting the Maharashtra government and National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd's (NHSRCL) allegations of causing undue hurdles in the land acquisition process, the company called the Maharashtra government's land acquisition proceedings against it "bad in law".
"This is demonstrably false and the record clearly establishes that any substantial delay is attributable entirely to the respondents (state and NHSRCL). It was the respondents who grossly delayed the acquisition proceedings," the affidavit noted.
It also called the award granted by the state government ”ex-facie illegal and hence a nullity.” The matter came up before a division bench comprising Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Sharmila Deshmukh on Thursday and has been adjourned till November 21.
It also claimed there were "multiple and patent illegalities" in the process. The company also said the state government and the NHSRCL delayed the acquisition proceedings. Citing the Fair Compensation Act, the affidavit stated that no report outlining the cost of land acquisition was prepared.
Godrej & Boyce submitted its affidavit in reply to the affidavits of the Maharashtra government and NHSRCL, challenging a September 15 Maharashtra government order awarding compensation to it for land acquisition for the project.
The company also submitted a petition challenging the state government and the NHSRCL, both of whom opposed it. The company sought that the High Court directs the state government to not proceed with the award passed and initiation of possession proceedings.
The Maharashtra government and Godrej & Boyce have been engaged in a legal fracas over acquiring the company-owned land in Mumbai’s Vikhroli area for the bullet train project since 2019. Out of the 508.17 km rail track between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, around 21 km is planned to be underground. One of the entry points to an underground tunnel falls on the land at Vikhroli, which is owned by Godrej.
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