91. Proceedings under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013
(1) If, in the course of proceedings under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 or under any law for the time being in force relating to the acquisition of land or other property, and before an award is made, in case the property under acquisition is waqf property, a notice of such acquisition shall be served by Collector on the Board and further proceedings shall be stayed to enable the Board to appear and plead as a party to the proceeding at any time within one month from the date of the receipt of such notice.
Explanation.—The reference to the Collector in the foregoing provisions of this sub-section shall, in relation to any other law referred to therein, be construed, if the Collector is not the competent authority under such other law to make an award of the compensation or other amount payable for acquisition of land or other property thereunder, as a reference to the authority under such other law competent to make such award.
(2) Where the Board has reason to believe that any property under acquisition is waqf property, it may at any time before the award is made appear and plead as a party to the proceeding.
(3) When the Board has appeared under the provisions of sub-section (1) or sub-section (2), no order shall be passed under section 77 or section 78 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 or under the corresponding provisions of the other law referred to in sub-section (1) without giving an opportunity to the Board to be heard.
(4) Any order passed under section 77 or section 78 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 or under the corresponding provisions of the other law referred to in sub-section (1) without giving an opportunity to the Board to be heard, shall be kept in abeyance relating to portion of the property claimed by the Board, if the Board, within one month of its coming to know of the order, applies in this behalf to the authority which made the order:
Provided that the Collector after hearing the parties concerned shall make the order within one month of the application of the Board.
Note: This section was amended by the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025 to substitute references to the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 with the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, shorten the Board’s appearance window to one month, and change the effect of an order made without hearing the Board from void to held in abeyance.
