LAWS(SC)-1996-11-16

MURARI Vs. UNION OF INDIA

Decided On November 01, 1996
MURARI Appellant
V/S
UNION OF INDIA Respondents

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) The appellants in the appeals enumerated hereinabove had challenged the acquisition proceedings in respect of their respective lands acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for purposes of planned development of Delhi by filing various writ petitions before the High court of Delhi. The said writ petitions were dismissed by a full bench of the Delhi High court by judgment dated 14/12/1995 against which these appeals have been preferred by special leave. Various notifications were issued from time to time under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for acquisition ofland for the public purpose of planned development of Delhi. The said notification covered the land belonging to the transfer petitioners, appellants and some other persons. The transfer petitioners like others had also filed writ petitions in the High court of Delhi being Writ Petitions Nos. 2179, 2178, 2140, 2139, 2197, 2083, 2138, 2144, 2199 of 1983 and Civil Writ Petitions Nos. 810-812 of 1984 challenging the acquisition of their respective lands on various grounds. These writ petitions were pending in the High court. However, during the course of hearing of Writ Petition (C) No. 4677 of 1985 pending before this court it was felt necessary to transfer all the aforesaid writ petitions from the Delhi High court to this court. Consequently on the basis of Interlocutory Applications Nos. 20 and 21 of 1995 in WP (C) No. 4677 of 1985 this court by order dated 14/12/1994 directed that all the aforementioned writ petitions be transferred to this court. This is how those writ petitions stand transferred to this court which have been registered as Transfer Cases Nos. 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 and 31 of 1995. As said earlier, besides the aforementioned transfer cases a large number of writ petitions filed by various persons were already pending before the High court of Delhi challenging the acquisition of their respective lands for the public purpose of planned development of Delhi which were dismissed by a full bench of the High court of Delhi by the impugned common judgment dated 14/12/1995 against which the appeals referred to above have been filed by special leave. Since the common question of law and facts arise in all these transfer cases and appeals and, therefore, they were clubbed together and are being disposed of by this common judgment.

(3.) The facts in brief leading to the transfer cases and the appeals may be narrated thus: Various notifications under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') were issued from time to time between 1959 and 1965 for the acquisition of several thousand acres of land for the common public project, namely, planned development of Delhi. Declarations under Section 6 of the Act were also made between the years 1966 and 1969, while the making of the awards was deferred till the year 1979-80. The master plan of Delhi was brought into force in September 1962 giving the details of the facts and circumstances under which it became imperative to have a development plan of the city of Delhi. It is common knowledge that after the partition of the country there was an enormous and huge migration of population into India, mainly at Delhi which resulted into a phenomenal growth of population of the settlers in Delhi besides considerable growth of industrial and commercial activities, which gave rise to various residential and occupational problems as a result of which various substandard structures, complexes and colonies came into being without proper layouts and other essentials of life. No land was available at reasonable price and within the reach of the common man. It was in these circumstances and with a view to give a proper shape to the city of Delhi, the capital of India, the central government had set up a Delhi Development Authority in 1955 andlater in December 1955 a Town Planning Organization was set up under the administrative control of Delhi Improvement Trust to monitor the planned development in the National Capital Territory of Delhi. It was in this background that planned development of Delhi was conceived of and to achieve that objective various notifications under Section 4 of the Act were issued from time to time between the period from 13/11/1959 and 21/01/1965 whereby large chunks of land were sought to be acquired. After issuance of notices under S. 9 and 10 of the Act a spate of writ petitions were filed challenging the acquisition proceedings on various grounds whose lands were sought to be acquired, most of which were dismissed including the letters patent appeal by the High court by an earlier judgment dated 29/4/19722 vide Aflatoon v. Lt. governor.