Munshi Khan vs Ut Of J & K Through
2024 Latest Caselaw 198 j&K

Jammu & Kashmir High Court

Munshi Khan vs Ut Of J & K Through on 21 February, 2024

                                                                      Sr. No. 3



         HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH
                          ATJAMMU

                                              WP(C) No. 4418/2019
                                              CM No. 9365/2019



Munshi Khan, age 65 years,                                      .....Petitioner(s)
S/O Farman Ali Khan,
R/O Maniyal Tehsil Thanamandi,
District Rajouri.

                        Through :- Mr. C M Koul, Sr. Advocate with
                                   Mr. Arshad Hussain, Advocate


                        v/s

     1. UT of J & K through                                   .....Respondent(s)
        Commissioner-cum-Secretary to
        Government, Revenue Department,
        Civil Secretariat, Jammu.
     2. Sub-Divisional Magistrate,
        Collector Land Acquisition,
        Thanamandi, Rajouri.
     3. Chief Manager, NRSS (XXIX),
        Transmission Ltd. House No. 6,
        Sector 7, Channi Himmat, Jammu.

                        Through :- Mrs. Monika Kohli, Sr. AAG


CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE M A CHOWDHARY, JUDGE

                              JUDGMENT(ORAL)

21.02.2024

1. The petitioner through the medium of this petition has sought the

following reliefs:

Mandamus commanding the respondents to provide/disburse the compensation to the petitioner with regard to:-

i) His house situate at Maniyat Tehsil Thanamandi, District Rajouri which has come under the construction/laying of 400 KV D/C Samba-Amargarh Transmission Line.

ii) The trees those have also come under the sweep of the aforementioned laying of 400 KV D/C Samba-Amargarh Transmission Line and consequently came to be cut and removed from the spot.

iii) The final negotiation arrived at with regard to the other trees which were also cut and removed from the spot as those trees had also came under the laying of 400 KV D/C Samba-

Amargarh Transmission Line and in respect of which the amount of compensation on final negotiation came to be fixed at Rs.2,00,000/-.

2. The petitioner has placed on record a communication of the Collector

addressed to the Executive Engineer PWD(R&B), Division Rajouri for the

assessment of the house of the petitioner. As per communication dated

23.03.2017, the Indenting Department has informed the Collector-Sub

Divisional Magistrate, Thanamandi Rajouri, that the houses of six people

including the petitioner Munshi Khan will be compensated for damage for the

safe Electric Horizontal Clearance lying under Transmission Line. The

petitioner has also placed on record a communication dated 16.03.2018 from

respondent No.3 to the petitioner stating that the trees lying under the

Transmission Line shall be cut for clearance of the belt for Transmission Line

and has also placed on record a Certificate issued in terms of Compensation for

Way Leave under Section 10-19 of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 by the

respondent No.3 in favour of the petitioner, indicating the trees which shall be

damaged by laying the Transmission Line.

3. Pursuant to notice, respondent No.2, who is the Collector, has filed a

cryptic reply stating that the house of the petitioner has not been assessed by the

Technical Department and has not said specifically dealt with regard to the

petitioner's claim regarding damage to the trees. It has also been pleaded that

respondent No.3, who is the Indenting Department despite service has not

responded.

4. It is very strange that the Indenting Department as well as the Collector

has not responded to the claim of the petitioner for paying compensation for

damage caused to his house as well as to the trees falling in his land under the

Transmission Line. The Collector under the Land Acquisition Laws, is a

statutory authority, who has legal competence to proceed in the matter for

acquisition of the property, required by any indenting developmental agency and

cannot shirk from his statutory obligations, merely saying that the indenting

agency had not responded to his/her communication, as the process can be

enforced by such an authority in terms of the procedural laws. It is unfortunate

that the Collector has not filed detailed reply, to assist this Court, for the

disposal of this case on merits.

5. Having proceeded in the matter, learned counsel for the petitioner submits

that the petitioner would be satisfied in case a direction is passed to the

Collector-Sub Divisional Magistrate, Thanamandi for proceeding in the matter

and conclude the acquisition proceedings in accordance with law at the earliest.

6. In view of the facts and circumstances of the case and the submissions

made by learned counsel for the petitioner, the petition is disposed of at this

stage with a direction to the respondent No.2-Sub Divisional Magistrate,

Collector Land Acquisition, Thanamandi, Rajouri to proceed in the matter and

pass the award, in accordance with law, granting compensation in favour of the

petitioner for damage to his house as well as to the trees in his land, as admitted

by the Indenting Department. This exercise shall be conducted within six weeks

from the date a copy of this order/judgment is served upon respondent No.2.

7. Disposed of, accordingly, along with pending applications(s).

(M A Chowdhary) Judge JAMMU 21.02.2024 Vijay

Whether the order is speaking: Yes Whether the order is reportable: Yes