VARGHESE Vs. DISTRICT COLLECTOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner's land was acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894; hereinafter, the 'Act'. The second respondent Special Tahsildar, the Land Acquisition Officer for that acquisition in terms of R.2(iv) of the Land Acquisition (Kerala) Rules, 1990, hereinafter, the 'Kerala Rules', for short, issued Ext. P1 notice dated 04/10/2007, in Form No. 10 (b) under R.13(1) of those Rules. Ext. P2 application of the petitioner under S.18 of the Act was addressed to the first respondent, District Collector and delivered in his office on 30/10/2007. Is that application to be entertained by the second respondent, Land Acquisition Officer

(2.) S.18(1) of the Act provides that any person interested, may, by written application to the Collector, require the matter to be referred by the Collector for determination of the Court. The time limit fixed as per provisos (a) and (b) of sub-section 2 of S.18, are also made dependant on the actions of the Collector as stated therein. S.3(c) of the Act provides that the expression 'Collector' means the Collector of a District, and includes a Deputy Commissioner and any officer specifically appointed by the appropriate Government to perform the functions of a Collector under the Act.

(3.) 'Land Acquisition Officer', as defined in R.2(iv) of the Kerala Rules, refers to the category of officers who are appointed under S.3(c) of the Act to perform the functions of a Collector. While R.13(1) of the Kerala Rules and the manner in which Form No. 10(b) is couched may tend to indicate that the Land Acquisition Officer, discharging the functions of the Collector, is the appropriate authority to be approached under S.18(1) of the Act, there is nothing under the Act or the Kerala Rules which denudes a person interested, from making his application under S.18(1) of the Act to the Collector of a District, where the land under acquisition is situated.