M SUBBANNA NAIK Vs. STATE OF MYSORE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These petitions under Art. 226 of the Constitution raise identical questions of law. Therefore, they can be disposed of in one order.

(2.) In these petitions, this court is asked to quash the acquisition proceedings commencing with the government Notification No. RDH 4 LCI 60 dated 18-2-1960 issued under S. 4(1) of the Mysore Land Acquisition Act (Act VII of 1894), to be hereinafter referred to as the "Act", and all consequential proceedings taken thereupon including the Notification No. RDH 4 LCI 60 dated 22-11-1960 issued under S. 6 of the Act, in respect of the petitioner's lands bearing Survey Numbers 50/1, 62 and 50/2 of Haralapura Village, Kasaba Hobli, Harihar Taluk Chitradurga District.

(3.) The material facts are not in dispute and they may be stated thus : The joint family of the petitioners in W.P. 2350/63 is the owner of S.No. 50/2 of that village. The Mysore Kirloskar Ltd., (3rd respondent in these petitions) wanted these lands for the extension of its factory. After holding necessary enquiries, the Government notified these lands amongst others, under S. 4(1) of the "Act" for acquisition. Thereafter, enquiries were held under S. 5-A of the "Act". On 20-11-1960 an agreement was entered into between the Government of Mysore and the 3rd respondent under S. 41 of the "Act". The said agreement was published in the Mysore Gazette dated 1-2-1960. On 22-11-1960, a notification under S. 6 of the "Act" (Notification No. RDH4 LCI 60 dated 22-11-1960), notifying the acquisition of the lands in question, was published. During the pendency of the land acquisition proceedings in question, several legislative changes took place. In the year 1961, the Mysore Legislature passed the Land Acquisition (Mysore Extension and Amendment) Act, 1961, (Mysore Act 17 of 1961) and the said Act came into force on 24-8-1961 after receiving the assent of the President. It repealed the "Act" and extended the Central Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (Central Act I of 1894) as amended by the said Act to the entire State of Mysore. Hereinafter, this Act will be referred to as the "1961 Act". In view of the proviso to sub-s. (2) of S. 2 of the 1961 Act, read with S. 6 of the Mysore General Clauses Act, 1899, proceedings taken under the corresponding repealed Acts including the "Act" were treated as having been taken under the corresponding provisions of the 1961 Act. In these cases the acquisition proceedings were partly held under the "Act" and partly under the 1961 Act. The case for the petitioners is that those proceedings are invalid as under the provisions of those statutes the Government had no competence to acquire lands for extension of a factory.