JASWANT SINGH Vs. UNION TERRITORY OF CHANDIGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These special leave petitions are directed against the common judgment of the High court of Punjab and Haryana in R. F. A. No. 451 of 1982 and connected appeals.

(2.) A large extent of land lying within the two revenue estates of villages Attawa and Kajheri in the outskirts of Chandigarh, came to be acquired for the purpose of development of Sector 42 of the city of Chandigarh, pursuant to preliminary notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short 'the Act') published in the local Gazette on 3/10/1979. The Land Acquisition Collector by his award made under Section 11 of the Act, determined the market value of the acquired land at Rs. 26,000. 00 an acre. The Land Acquisition court, Chandigarh which received the reference under Section 18 of the Act at the instance of the claimants determined the market value of the lands of village Attawa at Rs. 65,000. 00 an acre and of the lands of the village of Kajheri at Rs. 80,000. 00 an acre. However, the claimants who were not satisfied with the amount determined as market value of their lands by the Land Acquisition court took up the matter in appeal being R. F. A. No. 451 of 1982 and other connected appeals before the High court and sought for determination of the market value of their lands by the High court at a higher rate. The High court enhanced the market value of the acquired lands of the claimants to a uniform rate of Rs. 80,000. 00 an acre relying upon a division bench judgment of that court in Jaswant Singh v. Union of India whereunder the market value of lands lying in villages Nizampur Burail, Attawa, Kajheri, Maloya, Dadu Majra and Palsora acquired for the development of Chandigarh city pursuant to the preliminary notification published in the years 1977 and 1978 had been determined at a uniform rate of Rs. 62,000. 00 an acre. The High court, having regard to the fact that the ands of the claimants with whom we are concerned, had been acquired pursuant to the preliminary notification published on 3/10/1979 i. e. about two years subsequent to the acquisition of lands for which the market value had been fixed earlier by the High court at Rs. 62,000. 00 an acre, determinedthe market value of the claimants' lands at Rs. 80,000. 00 an acre. The said determination of the market value of the lands of the claimants, who are petitioners in the present special leave petitions, is not questioned by the Land Acquisition Collector as being high. However, it is the claimants who have filed the special leave petitions seeking enhanced market value for their acquired lands. On behalf of the petitioners in the present special leave petitions, no material available on record was brought to our notice which if had been taken into consideration by the High court would have enabled it to give a higher market value for their acquired lands. In this situation, there is no good reason for us to interfere with the judgment of the High court and increase the market value of the acquired lands of the petitioners, as has been sought.

(3.) In the result, we dismiss the special leave petitions, however with no costs.