A V CHANDRASHEKARAPPA Vs. SPECIAL LAND ACQUISITION OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by the claimants is directed against the common judgment and award dated 18th December 1999, passed in L.A.C. No. 128/1986, by the Additional Civil Judge (Sr. Dn), Davanagere, (hereinafter referred to as ''the Reference Court''), on the ground that the compensation awarded by the said Court is inadequate and needs to be enhanced.

(2.) Along with the appeal, counsel for the Appellants has filed I.A. No. 1/2006, for condoning the delay of 2471 days in filing the appeal. In the said application, it is stated that the land of the Appellants along with other lands were notified and acquired and treating all the lands similar, the Land Acquisition Officer awarded compensation of a sum of 16,709/-per acre. Not being satisfied with the award passed by the Land Acquisition Officer, the Appellants filed an application, seeking reference under Section 18(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, (hereinafter referred to as ''the Act''), for enhancement of compensation, before the jurisdictional Reference Court. The Reference Court, in turn, clubbed all the matters and recorded common evidence and the Appellants were claimants in LAC No. 128/1986, on the file of the learned Civil Judge, Davanagere, in the impugned common judgment and the land bearing Sy. No. 48/1 was jointly owned by the uncle of the Appellants, i.e. the elder brother of his late father and themselves, in which the Appellants were having 1/2 share in the same. The Reference Court, by its judgment dated 18th December 1999, enhanced the market value to 87,000/- per acre along with all statutory benefits. Not being further satisfied with the award passed by the Reference Court, the Appellants wanted to go in for an appeal seeking further enhancement of compensation. Therefore, with the said intention, they entrusted the work of filing an appeal to their uncle, since he was the elderly person and also familiar with the court proceedings. They were under the bona fide impression that their uncle has filed appeals on their behalf also, for enhancement of compensation.

(3.) When things stood thus, when the Appellants enquired about the result of the appeal with Sri. Prakash, the son of their uncle, they came to know during January 2006 that, their uncle who died in November 2001 had filed the appeal before the High Court only in respect of the extent of his share and not on behalf of the Appellants. Immediately, they contacted the local counsel, Sri. Kuberappa to arrange for the certified copies of the award in LAC No. 128/1986. Thereafter, they came to know that all the lower court records are sent to the High Court, since the appeal was filed against the very same judgment. They waited for the lower court records to come to the High Court. Thereafter, the counsel for the Appellants applied for the certified copy on 11th October 2006 and the same was delivered on 7th December 2006. Immediately thereafter, they came down to Bangalore to file the appeal and the counsel for Appellants filed the appeal on 22nd December 2006, along with the application for condonation of delay in filing the appeal.