Counties

KRC loses bid to repossess land from Kisumu trader

KRC demolitions in Kibos

A man looks for property to salvage, following demolitions by the Kenya Railways Corporation, at Kibos in Kisumu County on February 6, 2021. PHOTO | ONDARI ONGEGA | NMG

Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC) has lost a bid to repossess a disputed parcel of land from a Kisumu businessman, Harjot Singh Dhanjal.

KRC moved to the Court of Appeal seeking to overturn a ruling issued on April 29, 2020.

High Court Judge Anthony Ombwayo had prohibited the State agency from repossessing the plot Kenya Railways claimed was its property.

Appellate judge Fatuma Sichale dismissed the request, saying KRC failed to explain the delay in filing the notice of appeal. The judge noted that the corporation's lawyer filed the notice of appeal on July 27, 2020 three months after the High Court judgment.

The rules stipulate that the notice of appeal should be filed within 14 days from the delivery of the disputed decision.

While dismissing KRC's request to have its notice deemed as filed within the stipulated time, Justice Sichale said though there is no maximum or minimum period of delay under the law, the reasons for the delay must be reasonable.

The judge dismissed the corporation's explanation that the delay was occasioned by Covid-19.

In the judgment, Justice Ombwayo declared the actions of KRC’s agents to invade Mr Dhanjal's property in August 2019 as illegal.

The agency had started fencing the plot, which it claimed was encroached.