Gupta vs The District Magistrate
2021 Latest Caselaw 3025 UK

  IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND
             AT NAINITAL
THE HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI RAGHVENDRA SINGH CHAUHAN
                                  AND
         THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE ALOK KUMAR VERMA



         SPECIAL APPEAL NO.448 OF 2018


                     12th AUGUST, 2021


Between:


Rajesh Gupta                                            .......Appellant

and

The District Magistrate, Dehradun and others.

                                                   .......Respondents


Counsel       for       the : Mr. Ramji           Srivastava,    learned
appellant.                    counsel.


Counsel      for        the : Mr.   Pradeep     Joshi,           learned
respondents.                  Standing counsel.




The Court made the following:

JUDGMENT :     (per Hon'ble Justice Alok Kumar Verma)



             This special appeal has been filed against

the order dated 16.05.2018, passed by the learned

Single Judge in WPMS No. 592 of 2017, "Rajesh

Gupta Vs. The District Magistrate, Dehradun and

others", whereby the learned Single Judge dismissed

the writ petition.
 2.          Facts, to the extent necessary, are that the

appellant-writ      petitioner       was     the   owner     and

Bhumidhar      of   the     land-in-question       i.e.   0.2322

sq.mtrs. situated at Village Jantanwala Dhaulas Tehsil

Vikas Nagar, Dehradun. The name of the appellant-

writ petitioner was duly recorded in the revenue

record. The said land had been taken over by the

respondents for the purpose of construction of the

road. However, the respondents started saying that

the land-in-question was less than 0.2322 sq.mtrs.

According      to     the        appellant-writ      petitioner,

compensation was not paid to him inspite of his

several representations. Therefore, the appellant-writ

petitioner filed the Writ Petition No. 592 of 2017

(M/S). After hearing both the parties, the learned

Single Judge dismissed the writ petition vide order

dated 16.05.2018. Feeling aggrieved, the appellant-

writ petitioner is before us.


3.          Heard     Mr.    Ramji         Srivastava,    learned

counsel for the appellant and Mr. Pradeep Joshi,

learned Standing Counsel for the State.


4.          Mr. Ramji Srivastava, the learned counsel

for   the   appellant-writ       petitioner     submitted    that

earlier, the appellant-writ petitioner filed a Writ
                                 2
 Petition No. 228 of 2013 (M/S), which was disposed of

vide order dated 17.09.2014, whereby the respondent

no.1 was directed to calculate the compensation

within 90 days, after issuing the notice to the

petitioner and after giving opportunity of being heard

to the petitioner and amount of compensation along

with solatium and statutory interest shall be paid to

the petitioner within next 60 days, if compensation

along with solatium and statutory interest is not paid

within next 60 days, then petitioner shall also be paid

penal interest at the rate of 12% per annum till the

actual payment is made to the petitioner. Thereafter,

the appellant-writ petitioner filed a contempt petition

and during the pendency of the contempt petition, a

cheque of Rs. 6,68,926/- (Rupees Six Lakh Sixty

Eight Thousand Nine Hundred Twenty Six) was

provided to him. The said cheque of the compensation

was received by him under protest. The learned

counsel for the appellant further submitted that the

land-in-question is within 50 mtrs. from the main

road and the respondents should have calculate

compensation accordingly.


5.        During the course of the arguments, Mr.

Ramji   Srivastava,   the   learned   counsel   for   the

                            3
 appellant-writ petitioner submitted that this special

appeal, after setting aside the impugned order dated

16.05.2018, passed by the learned Single Judge, may

be disposed of by directing the respondent no.1 to

measure the land-in-question and re-calculate the

compensation according to the prevailing circle rate of

the year 2009.


6.           The    submissions        made    by   the         learned

counsel for the appellant regarding re-measurement

of   the     land-in-question         and   re-fixing     its    value

according to the circle rate of the year, 2009 have

been     accepted    by     the   learned      counsel      for    the

respondents.


7.           Therefore,     the       impugned      order        dated

16.05.2018, passed by learned Single Judge, is set

aside and with the consent of the parties, the present

special appeal is disposed of with the following

directions:


       (i)   The     District         Magistrate,       Dehradun,

respondent      no.1      shall   re-measure        the     land-in-

question and after re-measurement of the land, he

shall re-calculate the value of the land-in-question

according to the circle rate of the year, 2009 and


                                  4
 thereafter, the compensation shall be given to the

appellant according to law.


        (ii)    The      District       Magistrate,     Dehradun,

respondent no.1, shall take decision in the matter,

after        giving   opportunity       of   being   heard   to   the

appellant, within a period of two months from the

date of production of the certified copy of this order.




                      _____________________________
                      RAGHVENDRA SINGH CHAUHAN, C.J.


                                        ___________________
                                        ALOK KUMAR VERMA, J.

Dt:12th August, 2021 Mamta/Neha