Allahabad HC suspends Sultanpur judge who ‘protested’ land acquisition

Confirming Shukla’s suspension, the high court website states that additional district and session judge Manoj Kumar Shukla has been “suspended since April 3 and attached with the headquarters Sonbhadra”. It, however, doesn’t mention the reason behind the suspension of Shukla,who hails from Basti district and has been posted in Sultanpur since 2019.

The 28-km-long Hariya-Rajwaha Saryu canal is part of the Saryu Nahar National Project, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated last year.

As the process of land acquisition for the project began, the irrigation department wrote a letter to the Basti district administration, seeking their help in acquiring land, said district administration officials. The administration then acquired the land and sent letters to their owners, informing them about the acquisition, they said. Soon,  construction work for the canal began on the acquired land.

“Among the acquired land was the farmland of Shukla’s father (Jagdish Prasad Shukla) the cost of which was calculated based on the circle rate. A cheque for the calculated amount was signed and the judge’s father was informed to collect it. He came here, but did not collect the cheque,” said an officer associated with the acquisition drive.

Ballia Additional District Magistrate Abhay Kumar Mishra said, “The judge’s land falls in the middle of the project, so its acquisition was necessary. After the incident, a letter with all details of the incident was sent to the state. No FIR has been registered.”