Mohali villagers gather on GMADA premises as sessions court orders attachment of property
Order after authorities failed to disburse the compensation dues, amounting to Rs 3.98 crore, to farmers of Bhaggo Majra village
3 min read
Residents of Bhago Majra village sitting on the attached property of the GMADA's LAC office in Mohali, on Tuesday, September 2, 2025. (Express Photo: Jasbir Malhi)High drama unfolded at the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) office in Punjab’s Mohali on Tuesday when residents of village Bhaggo Majra gathered outside the complex and officials, under court orders, moved in to take possession of movable property from the office of the Land Acquisition Collector (LAC).
According to reports, the District and Sessions Court, Mohali, in an order on September 1, issued an attachment warrant against the movable property of the Punjab government after the authorities failed to disburse the compensation dues, amounting to Rs 3.98 crore, to the farmers of Bhaggo Majra village. The order granting compensation to farmers was passed in 2016, in lieu of the land acquired by the GMADA for Unitech.
Gurjant Singh, Sarpanch of Bhaggo Majra, confirmed the dues and added that “this order was passed in 2016 in our favour, but even after nine years, it has not been implemented, forcing the court to intervene strongly.”
The attachment proceedings on the GMADA premises stem from the order of an execution case by Neetika Verma, Additional District and Sessions Judge-2, Mohali.
The warrant, dated September 1, directs the Collector, Acquisition, Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA), Mohali, to seize GMADA’s movable property and submit a compliance report to the court by September 3. The court stressed that the “attachment must be executed and reported to the court on September 3 without fail”.
Land Acquisition Collector Harbans Singh told The Indian Express that “the payment is to be made by Unitech Company because the land was acquired by GMADA for Unitech. Company officers have been summoned, and further proceedings are underway”.
At the site, Akali leader Jasvir Singh Jassa, who is also a farmer, criticised the government for planning new acquisitions, despite claims that it has no funds to pay the long-pending dues of acquired lands.
“For years, payments for earlier acquisitions have been withheld. Recently, GMADA was preparing to acquire another 65,000 acres, but the Akali Dal stopped it through protest. GMADA must first clear the dues of villagers before acquiring any new land,” Jassa noted.
Echoing the anger of villagers, Baljinder Singh of Bhaggo Majra said, “it is extremely unfortunate that people have to run from court to court for years just to receive their rightful payments. Officials show no concern, and only when courts issue strict attachment orders does the government face embarrassment”.
Surmukh Singh, a resident of the village and one of the petitioners in the case, said, “since the GMADA acquired our land, it is its responsibility to pay us. That is why we made GMADA a party in the case. The authority cannot shirk its responsibility, and this is precisely why the court ruled in our favour”.
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