S. Sivanna vs The State Of Telangana
2021 Latest Caselaw 2063 Tel

      THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE A.ABHISHEK REDDY

                 WRIT PETITION No.14091 of 2021
ORDER:

Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner, and learned

Government Pleader for Irrigation & Command Area Development,

learned Government Pleader for Planning & Finance, learned

Government Pleader for Revenue, and learned Government Pleader

for Land Acquisition for the respondents. With their consent, the

Writ Petition is disposed of at the stage of admission itself.

Aggrieved by the inaction of the respondents in depositing the

decreetal amount to the credit of E.P. No.41 of 2019 in O.P. No.10

of 2009 on the file of the Court of Senior Civil Judge, Gadwal, the

present writ petition is filed.

Learned Government Pleader, on instructions, has stated

that the official respondents are taking necessary steps to deposit

the amounts and that as and when the amounts are received, the

authorities will deposit the compensation amount.

As can be seen from the record, the notification under

Section 4 (1) the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, was issued way back

on 07.10.1998 and the Award was passed on 30.05.2002.

Subsequently, the compensation amount was enhanced fixing the

market value of the property at Rs.1,54,700/- per acre apart from

granting other statutory benefits viz., interest, solatium, etc., by

virtue of the order and decree, dated 16.11.2018 passed in

O.P.No.10 of 2009 by the Senior Civil Judge, Gadwal, and the said

order has become final as no appeal was preferred questioning the

same.

Having regard to the above backdrop of the case, this Court

is of the considered view that the authorities cannot take their own

time to deposit the amounts which are already enhanced by the

competent Court. The inaction of the respondents in paying the

enhanced compensation amounts in time to the petitioner, who is

already suffering from the loss of his land, would make him to also

suffer untold hardship and misery and run from pillar to post for

getting the enhanced compensation deposited and incur expenses

for the same. He will also have to incur additional expenditure for

approaching the Court for seeking the required relief. With the

raising inflation, the value of the money will also go down and the

delayed payment of the enhanced compensation will result in the

compensation amount itself losing all the charm and utility. If the

petitioner or similarly situated persons receive the enhanced

compensation within the time, they will be in a position to use that

amount in some other investments and get some returns over the

same.

Further, in Bhimidipati Annapoorna Bhavani v. Land

Acquisition Officer1, while dealing with similar issue, the Larger

Bench of this Court has held as under:

"One of the self-imposed restrictions is that High Court generally refrains from entertaining a writ petition when there is adequate and efficacious alternate remedy available to a party, and, when such alternate remedy available is a statutory remedy, such statutory remedy has been duly exhausted. Availability of such alternate and efficacious or statutory remedy itself is not a bar in entertaining a writ petition in the given facts and circumstances. We need not multiply the circumstances in which such discretionary power may be exercised by the Court in such matters despite availability of such alternate, adequate and efficacious remedy. But the limits as notice in B.Govinda Reddy's case supra by a learned Single Judge of this Court are sufficient that in cases arising out of the Act where the amount of compensation, finally determined has not been paid, a person must first resort to the alternate efficacious remedy of taking out execution

1 2005 (3) ALD 233 (LB)

and when despite taking out execution proceedings, if there is any delay caused on the part of authorities, resort can be had to filing of a writ petition in this Court and, this Court, while exercising its discretionary jurisdiction, in appropriate cases, may issue directions for immediate deposit of the amount of compensation by the State Government or the authorities on whose behalf the land has been acquired."

For the afore-stated reasons and the law laid down by the

Larger Bench of this Court in the above referred judgment, the

official respondents are directed to deposit the enhanced

compensation amount, in terms of the order and decree, dated

16.11.2018, passed in OP No.10 of 2009 by the Senior Civil Judge,

Gadwal, to the credit of E.P. No.41 of 2019, as expeditiously as

possible, preferably, within a period of two months from the date of

receipt of a copy of this order.

Accordingly, the Writ Petition is disposed of.

Miscellaneous petitions pending in this writ petition, if any,

shall stand closed. There shall be no order as to costs.

________________________ A.ABHISHEK REDDY, J Date : 09.07.2021 sur