Draupadi Devi Dharmada Trust vs Daya Shankar And Ors.

The Supreme Court held that the Trust, for whose benefit land was acquired under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, is a 'person interested' and thus has the locus standi to challenge the valuation of the land. The Court set aside the Allahabad High Court's conclusion that the Trust lacked such standing, referencing the precedent in Neyvely Lignite Corporation v. Spl. Tahsildar. Furthermore, the Court affirmed that the acquisition of land for a college constitutes a public purpose under Section 3(f) of the Land Acquisition (U.P. Amendment) Act XXII of 1954, dismissing the landowner's appeal against the acquisition. The appeals by the State and the Trust were allowed, while the landowner's appeal was dismissed.