The Land Acquisition Collector vs Land Acquisition Collector
2021 Latest Caselaw 3907 HP

    IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH AT SHIMLA


                ON THE 13TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2021
                                 BEFORE




                                                               .
            HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE SANDEEP SHARMA





            REGULAR FIRST APPEAL No.111 OF 2013

    Between:-





    THE LAND ACQUISITION COLLECTOR,
    SHAHNEHAR, FATEHPUR, TEHSIL
    FATEHPUR DISTT.KANGRA, HP





                                                           ......APPELLANT


    (BY SH.SUDHIR BHATNAGAR,
    ADDITIONAL ADVOCATE GENERAL,

    SH.NARENDER THAKUR, & SH.R.P. SINGH,
    DEPUTY ADVOCATE GENERALS.)

    AND


    SH.BISHAMBER DASS S/O SH.RANJHU RAM,
    RESIDENT OF VILLAGE & MOUZA CHHABBER,
    TEHSIL FATEHPUR, DISTT. KANGRA (HP)




                                                        ......RESPONDENT
    (BY GAURAV GAUTAM, ADVOCATE)





    Whether approved for reporting ?





           This appeal coming on for orders this day, the Court passed the
    following:

                           JUDGMENT

By way of instant appeal filed under Section 54 of the

Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the Act),

challenge has been laid to award dated 21.01.2012, passed by

learned Additional District Judge-I, Kangra at Dharamshala in

Reference Case RBT No.365-K/200/2006, titled as: Bishamber

Dass vs. Land Acquisition Collector, alongwith other connected

Land Reference petitions, as described in the award.

.

2. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and gone

through the record of the case.

3. It is not in dispute that the suit land belonging to the

claimant-respondent, came to be acquired for public purpose;

namely construction of Shah Nehar Project and acquisition

proceedings commenced with the issuance of Notification

under Section 4 of the Act on 13.09.2000.

r The Land

Acquisition Collector (for short 'LAC') passed award No.25,

dated 20.1.2003 and awarded compensation of the acquired

land as per the classification of the land mentioned in the

award.

4. Claimant, who is respondent in this appeal, being

aggrieved and dissatisfied with the amount of compensation

awarded by 'LAC', preferred Reference Case RBT No.365-

K/200/2006 (supra) under Section 18 of the Act, before the

learned Additional District Judge-I, Kangra at Dharamshala,

H.P., seeking therein enhancement of compensation. Learned

Additional District Judge-I, Kangra at Dharamshala vide

impugned award dated 21.01.2012, re-determined the market

value of entire land irrespective of classification on uniform

basis and awarded a sum of Rs.7.5 lacs per hectare as per

detail given in the impugned award.

5. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned

.

award dated 21.01.2012, passed by the learned Additional

District Judge-I, Kangra at Dharamshala, H.P. in Reference

Petition No.365-K/2010/2006 (supra), having been filed under

Section 18 of the Act, appellant-State has approached this

Court for setting aside the same.

6. It is not in dispute before this Court that similar situate

claimants, whose r land also came to be acquired for

construction of Shah Nehar Project in the acquisition

proceedings commenced with the publication of Notification

issued under Section 4 of the Act, had filed land reference

petitions before the learned Additional District Judge-I, Kangra

at Dharamshala, praying therein to enhance the compensation

awarded by 'LAC', in its award dated 20.01.2003. Those

reference petitions were clubbed and disposed of by a common

award passed in Reference Case RBT No.365-K/200/2006

(supra), wherein the Reference Court re-determined the market

value of entire land irrespective of classification on uniform

basis and awarded a sum of Rs.7.5 lacs per hectare, which has

been reaffirmed by a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court vide

judgment dated 01.06.2016 in RFA No.953 of 2012-C, titled

as: Land Acquisition Collector & Another vs. Jatinder

Singh, (for short "Jatinder Singh's case") alongwith

connected matters.

7. Mr.Gaurav Gautam, learned counsel representing

.

the respondent-claimant, while placing reliance upon the

judgment passed in RFA No.953 of 2012-C (supra), contended

that this appeal also deserves to be dismissed, in terms of

aforesaid judgment, because undisputedly claimant in the case

at hand alongwith the claimants in the aforesaid

references/cases were awarded compensation vide a common

award. He further argued that since this Court had upheld the

findings of Reference Court, returned in the aforesaid

Reference Petitions, therefore, the claimant in in this appeal is

also entitled to market value of entire acquired land as done by

Reference Court.

8. Mr.Narender Thakur, learned Deputy Advocate

General, representing appellant-State, while fairly

acknowledging the factum with regard to passing of judgment

in RFA No.953 of 2012-C (supra), was not able to refute the

fact that claimant-respondent in this appeal is also entitled to

enhanced market value of acquired land, as has been held in

Reference Case RBT No.365-K/2010/2006, which was the

basis for enhancing the compensation in the award under

challenge in this appeal, and which has further been upheld by

this Court in RFA No.953 of 2012-C alongwith other

connected matters.

9. Consequently, in view of aforesaid discussion as

.

well as fair stand adopted by Mr.Narender Thakur, learned

Deputy Advocate General, representing the appellant-State,

present appeal is dismissed and it is ordered that directions

contained in RFA No.953 of 2012-C, titled as: Land

Acquisition Collector & Another vs. Jatinder Singh, shall

mutatis mutandis apply to the present cases also.

10. Appellant-State is directed to deposit the entire award

amount in the Registry of this Court within a period of eight

weeks from today, if not already deposited.

11. Interim order, if any, is vacated. All the miscellaneous

applications are disposed of.

    August 13, 2021                            (Sandeep Sharma)
        (aks)                                       Judge