Mohali, June 6: A local court has ordered the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) to vacate 22 biswas (approximately 0.28 acres) of excess land belonging to a Mohali farmer that was used without acquisition or compensation during the construction of the 200-ft-wide Airport Road, also known as PR-7.
The decision comes more than eight years after Devinder Singh, son of deceased landowner Rulda Singh, filed a suit in January 2017, alleging that GMADA had extended construction beyond the land legally acquired from his family in 2008–09.
The land in question belonged originally to Narata Singh, a resident of Nadiali village, whose 2 bighas and 12 biswas were formally acquired for the road, and he was compensated ₹5.19 crore. However, an additional 22 biswas were allegedly used without any compensation during road construction in 2015.
After Narata’s death in 2015 and Rulda’s during the trial, Devinder pursued the case. Additional Civil Judge (Senior Division) Manpreet Kaur ruled in his favour on Thursday, stating:
“The suit of plaintiffs partly succeeds and is hereby partly decreed with costs to the effect that defendants shall remove their encroachment over 22 biswas within four months… failing which the plaintiffs shall have every right to get the said encroachment removed through the process of law.”
Senior advocate Rajesh Gupta, who represented the family, said, “GMADA can no longer forcibly retain the land. If it fails to vacate within four months, we will seek warrants of possession, which could obstruct the road’s current alignment.”
GMADA had admitted in court that the excess land was used, and claimed the Land Acquisition Collector had been requested to initiate proceedings, but the court found that insufficient.
The road—built at a cost of over ₹1,500 crore under the SAD-BJP regime—links Chandigarh International Airport with Mohali, Panchkula, and other towns, and is part of the PR-7 corridor.
Despite its importance, the 17.5-km stretch has faced criticism for poor quality. Within two years of construction, a 6-km stretch became hazardous, prompting the then Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh to launch a Vigilance probe in 2017 and commission a technical review after fatal accidents.
The project was overseen by the controversial former GMADA chief engineer Surinder Pal Singh Pehalwan, later booked for alleged corruption and disproportionate assets.
