The “Public Purpose” That Is Not Inclusive

Abstract

Eminent domain is understood as the power of a government, subsumed under its sovereignty, which gives it the right to acquire private property for a “public purpose.” Public purpose is the justification for invoking a government’s over-arching right on property within its jurisdiction. Currently, the phrase is defined under Section 2(l) (a-f) of The Right To Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, And Resettlement Act, 2013. The phrase does not describe a purpose or expected goal of a project for which property may be acquired under the current formulation of the Act. Instead, the Act limits the understanding of the phrase as a set of projects that are considered to be pursuant to “public purpose.” The paper studies the shortcomings of the current interpretation of the phrase. The choice of words to describe the motive behind invoking eminent domain provides an insight into the strength of criterion they present. Therefore, public “purpose” has a broader interpretation than some other similar but binding terms like public “use” or “welfare.” The paper also looks at the extent to which “public purpose” can guarantee social benefits from large-scale development projects that rely on the Act for land resources.