Delhi High Court
Om Prakash vs Land Acquisitoion Collector ... on 7 November, 2017
$~48
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
% Date of Judgment: 07th November, 2017
+ W.P.(C) 226/2017
OM PRAKASH ..... Petitioner
Through Mr. Lohit Ganguly and Mr.Ajay
Kumar, Advocates.
versus
LAND ACQUISITOION COLLECTOR (NORTH) & ANR
..... Respondents
Through Mr.Yeeshu Jain, Standing Counsel
with Ms.Jyoti Tyagi, Adv. For
L&B/LAC.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE G.S.SISTANI
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE V. KAMESWAR RAO
G.S.SISTANI, J. (ORAL)
C.M. No.1036/2017 (Exemption)
Exemption allowed, subject to all just exceptions.
Application stands disposed of.
W.P.(C) 226/2017
1. By way of this petition filed under Article 226 of Constitution of
India, the petitioner prays for issuance of a direction to respondent no.1 to
consider and decide the application filed by the petitioner under Section 30
of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 and dispose of the same within a time
bound frame in accordance with law.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that one Sis Ram (the
predecessor of the petitioner) was in possession of the land comprised in
Khasra no.81/19 Min. (2-8) situated at the revenue estate of village
Mohammadpur (Narela) (hereinafter referred to as 'subject land'). It is also
the case of petitioner that in the year 1989, Late Sis Ram filed a petition
under Section 85 of the Delhi Land Reform Act, 1954 for declaration of his
Bhumidari rights. Sis Ram expired on 10.01.1996. Thereafter, an award
bearing No.24 of 2003-04 was made on 29.01.2004. Possession of the land
was taken on 24.06.2004 from the petitioner and his family. In the year
2004, interested persons filed various applications under Sections 18, 30, 31
of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, as a result of which, a reference was
made to the Court of ADJ, Tis Hazari, Delhi and the matter was registered as
LAC case No.58/2004 titled as Union of India v. Hari Parkash. This case is
still pending. It is pleaded that on 04.02.2005, the Revenue Court of SDM
closed the petition under Section 85 of the Delhi Land Reform Act, 1954 as
the possession of the subject land had already been taken. The petitioner and
his family filed an application under section 30 of the Land Acquisition Act,
1894 before the Land Acquisition Collector (North-West) for a reference to
the Court where the said land acquisition reference LAC case No.58/2004
was pending. The Court of ADJ, Tis Hazari, Delhi where LAC case
No.58/2004 was pending passed an order on 07.09.2007 and allowed the
application under Order 1 Rule 10 CPC filed by the petitioner and his family
members. But the order dated 07.09.2007 allowing the application under
Order 1 Rule 10 has been challenged by some interest parties by filing a
C.M. (M) No.1556/2007 before this Court, which is still pending.
3. Counsel submits that in the year 2013, the petitioner exercised his
independent remedy by filing an application seeking information on the
status of the application filed in the year 2007 under Section 30 of Land
Acquisition Act, 1894. A reply to this application was received confirming
that no records are available or traceable, meaning thereby the same might
have been lost. The petitioner filed a fresh application on 20.05.2014 under
section 30 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for reference to the Court of
learned ADJ where LAC case No.58/2004 was pending. However, till date,
the said application has neither been considered nor decided.
4. Notice in this writ petition was issued on 11.01.2017. No reply has
been filed till date.
5. Mr. Jain submits that having regard to the fact that the petitioner has
already been impleaded in the reference, which is already pending, the
second reference under Section 30 would not lie.
6. We have heard learned counsel for the parties. Since, the prayer made
in this petition is limited only to a direction to the respondent to consider and
decide the application filed under Section 30 of the Land Acquisition Act,
1894, without expressing any opinion on the merit of the case, we direct the
Land Acquisition Collector to consider the application filed by the petitioner
under section 30 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894.
7. Accordingly, we allow this petition. Respondent no.1 is directed to
decide the application of the petitioner in accordance with law within a
period of 60 days from today. We make it clear that we have not expressed
any opinion on the merit of the case and the Land Acquisition Collector will
decide the matter on merit in accordance with law unaffected by any
observation made in this order. All rights, contentions and objections of the
respondents are kept open.
8. The petition stands disposed of.
CM.APPL 13662/2015(stay)
9. The application stands disposed of in view of order passed in writ
petition.
G.S.SISTANI, J
V. KAMESWAR RAO, J
NOVEMBER 07, 2017/ck
