After getting a favorable verdict in an extraordinary legal battle, a farmer from Punjab briefly became the owner of a prestigious train of Indian Railways, which was talked about all over the country.
The farmer is Sampuran Singh from Katana village. Let’s take a look at his legal battle. In 2007, Indian Railways acquired land from several farmers, including Sampuran Singh from Katana village, Punjab, to build a railway line between Ludhiana and Chandigarh. The Northern Railway administration gave Sampuran Singh Rs. 25 lakh per acre as compensation for the land. Meanwhile, farmers in a neighboring village have received Rs. 71 lakh per acre as compensation for similar land. Knowing this, Sampuran Singh, who felt that the Railways had treated him unfairly, filed a petition in 2012 seeking higher compensation. The court ruled in his favor after a multi-year case.

The compensation was initially increased to Rs 50 lakh per acre and later to Rs 1.7 crore per acre. Despite the court’s order, the Northern Railway failed to pay the full amount to Sampuran Singh. In 2015, he received only Rs 42 lakh from the Railways. The Railways did not pay the remaining Rs 1.05 crore. In 2017, District and Sessions Judge Jaspal Verma took strict action after the Indian Railways failed to comply with the court’s order. The court ordered the seizure of the Swarna Shatabdi Express train at Ludhiana railway station as compensation for the outstanding dues. In addition, the Ludhiana Station Master’s Office was also ordered to be seized.

Following the court’s legal order, Samburan Singh, along with his lawyer, arrived at the Ludhiana railway station and seized the train as a fine, becoming its temporary owner. The incident created a stir. Despite Singh’s temporary ownership, the train was quickly released. A division engineer, with the help of a court officer, resolved the matter within minutes and ensured that the train resumed its scheduled operations. Meanwhile, the compensation case is still pending. Samburan Singh’s legal proceedings are still ongoing. The case highlights the struggles that landowners face when dealing with compensation claims against large government entities. While owning a train is an unimaginable situation for most individuals, Samburan Singh’s story is a rare exception.