Special Land Acquisition Officer ... vs The Commissioner, Bmc
2003 Latest Caselaw 1135 Bom

JUDGMENT

1. Advocates for the SLAO, Acquiring Body and the claimant Nos. 2 and 3 are present. Advocate for the SLAO states that the claimant Nos. 4 and 6 have died and, he is making this statement on the basis of remarks on the RPAD which is to the effect that the addressee i.e. the claimant Nos. 4 to 6 have expired. The question arose as to who is responsible to apply for bringing the legal representatives or the deceased claimants on record. Generally, as per the practice followed, the SLAO makes an application for bringing the legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record. But the question is, whether actually and legally it is the duty of the SLAO to get the particulars of the legal representatives of the deceased claimant and to make an application for bringing them on record. For this purpose I sought assistance of all the three advocates who are present in Court.

2. Advocate appearing for the claimants contended that duty should be cast upon the SLAO to make necessary application in the Court for bringing the legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record. However, he could not substantiate his arguments on the basis of legal provisions.

3. A perusal of the scheme of different provisions of Land Acquisition Act 1894 shows that initial proceedings for acquisition of land and for determination of compensation go before the Collector of the Land Acquisition Officer appointed in that behalf. During all these proceedings the Collector or the SLAO has to give notices to the interested persons so as to give them hearing, may be about the proposed acquisition or about the compensation. Thereafter the collector has to complete the enquiry and pass the Award under Section 11 of the Land Acquisition Act after determining the true area of the land and the compensation which in his opinion should be allowed for the land and the apportionment of the said compensation among all the persons known or believed to be interested in the land, of whom, or of whose claims, he has information, whether or not they have respectively appeared before him.

4. Section 12 provides as to when the Award of Collector is to be final and Sections 13, 13A, 14 and 15 prescribe the procedure and other incidental aspects about the inquiry to be done by the Collector. Thereafter the Collector is empowered to take possession under Section 16. The part III of the Act is about "Reference to Court and Procedure thereon."

5. Section 18 lays down that Any person interested who has not accepted the award may, by written application to the Collector, require that the matter be referred by the Collector for the determination of the Court about his objection of amount of compensation or whatever that may be.

6. Subsection 2 of Section 18 provides that the person interested and who is making an application to the collector in that regard shall state the grounds on which the objection to the award is taken giving other particulars. Proviso to Sub-section 2 speaks about the time limit within which the objection is to be made. Under Section 19 the Collector has been enjoined to make a reference and for that purpose the collector will give all the information that is required in Sub-section 1(a) to 1(d).

7. It appears from the two important provisions of Part III i.e. Sections 18 and 19 that the job of the Collector is over as soon as he makes reference giving all the necessary particulars. Thereafter Section 20 provides that the Court will cause a notice to be served on the person i.e. the claimant at whose instance the reference was made by the Collector and as per Sub-section (b) all persons interested in the objection, and under Sub-section (c) if the objection in that regard to the area of the land or to the amount of the compensation, then to the Collector.

8. There is no other provisions either in the Act or in Part III casting any duty upon the collector after compliance to Section 18 and after the notices are issued by the Court under Section 20 to take care of the proceedings pending before the Court. It appears from Sections 18 and 19 that even though the Award is passed by the Collector or by the Officers appointed in that regard, the Collector has been made responsible only in forwarding the objection to the acquisition to the Court in the form of Reference. The statute appears to have chosen the collector as an agency for forwarding the reference because the Collector fully knows about the acquisition proceedings and he can on that basis comment upon the objection raised by the claimant to the compensation or to the other angles of the award.

9. If at all there is a dispute of apportionment of compensation under Section 30 the Collector is empowered to refer the same dispute to the Court. Obviously such a dispute has to be raised and presented to the Collector, and the Collector will, after compliance to Section 19, make a reference to the Court.

10. It is, therefore, clear that the job and duty of the Collector gets over after the reference is sent to the Court and in any case after the notices are issued to the persons mentioned in Section 20 by and through the Court. Thereafter the matter will proceed before the Court like a civil suit in so far as the procedure is applicable to such references. In view of this situation, it most be duty of the claimant before the Court to file their application for reference under Section 18 and whose particulars have been submitted by the Collector under Section 19 to take proper steps for proceeding in the reference which also includes step to bring the legal representative of the deceased claimant on record. At this juncture my attention was invited to the judgment of LAR No. 31 of 1980 given by Justice Rebello wherein he observed in para 9 as under:-

"Having said so, the next question is as to whether the procedure followed whereby the Government Advocate / State were directed to carry out the amendments needs to be interfered with. Ultimately by bringing the legal representatives on record what the Court in fact directs is an amendment of the reference. Reference technically cannot be amended by the Court or by the claimant. That can be done by the Collector himself or the Land Acquisition Officer. It is in that context that the direction for amendment of the reference to bring legal representatives on record is being followed. Considering the above, I do not find that the practice and procedure as being followed till date whereby the State is directed to carry out the amendment needs to be interfered with or disturbed. However, once the application is made by the legal representatives of the claimants, the question of the State serving notice afresh on the legal representatives would not arise, unless fresh notice is directed to be issued by the Court to legal representatives who are not represented before it."

It is observed in the aforesaid judgment that reference technically cannot be amended by the Court or by the claimant because it is the reference of the Collector and that can be done by the Collector himself or the Land Acquisition Officer.

11. If a duty is cast upon the SLAO to apply to the Court for bringing the legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record or for bringing the legal representatives of the legal representatives of the claimant, if so required, then in my opinion technicality will have to be given secondary place and practical aspect will have to be considered. Even under Section 19(1)(b) what the collector requires to state is, the names of the persons whom he has reasons to think interested in such land. It has to be noted that the reference is made by the Collector to the Court on the basis of the information supplied to him by the claimant under Section 18. The Collector on his own accord cannot have any knowledge about the names of the claimants, their interse relationship, their occupation, addresses, age and it is only upon information, that is given by the claimant under Section 18, the Collector makes the reference.

12. By the time notices are served through the Court upon all those claimants or the persons mentioned in Section 20(a) and (b) and by the time the matter comes for evidence, it is always possible that the original claimants have left their places; have left the district and State and have settled somewhere else. The Collector cannot keep track of all those subsequent developments and, therefore, looking to the role of the Collector under Sections 18 and 19, it has to be held that it is for the claimants or the applicants under Section 18 or the persons mentioned in Sub-section (a) and (b) or Section 20 to prosecute and pursue their claim. They must be diligent and must take all the steps in prosecuting the reference which include bringing the legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record. If some of the claimants or some of the persons mentioned in Sub-sections (a) and (b) of Section 20 die during proceeding, then like all other civil cases, their representatives who are may be or other claimants must make an application to the Court for bringing the legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record. In fact the Court issues notice to the claimants under the provisions of Land Acquisition Act as stated above then it is not only a notice requiring them to appear but it is also a notice that Civil Court has taken cognizance of the matter and will be dealt with or decision by the Civil Court. Therefore, even legally it is the duty of the claimants to take necessary steps in bringing the legal representatives on record.

13. In this background it has to be held that it is not the duty of the Land Acquisition Officer or the Collector to apply for bringing the legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record. But it will be for the claimants to be diligent to bring legal representatives of the deceased claimant on record. Point is, therefore, decided accordingly. Certified copy expedited.

14. Parties to act upon an ordinary copy of this order duly authenticated by the P.A.