AMIYO PAL CHOUDHURY Vs. PROVINCE OF BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Premises described as plot No. 489 of Southern Avenue in South Calcutta was requisitioned under Rule 75A of the Defence of India Rules on 2-10-1944. -Possession was taken on 20-10-1944, of the ground floor and of the entire premises on 15-11-1944. As no agreement could be reached between the owner & the Government as under Section 19(1) (a), Defence of India Act as to the compensation to be paid for such requisition, the question of proper compensation was inferred to an arbitrator. The Land Acquisition Collector had offered compensation at Rs. 250/- per mensem for the period when only the ground floor had been requisitioned, such compensation being inclusive of the charges for payment of rates and taxes and for repairs. As from the date when the entire premises had been taken possession of by the requisitioning authority compensation at Rs. 450/- per mensem inclusive of municipal taxes but exclusive of repairs had been offered. This was not accepted by the owner.

(2.) On receipt of the records the Arbitrator directed notices to be issued on the claimant and the Government to state their respective opinion as to the fair amount of compensation. On behalf of the Government the offer as made by the Collector was stated to be a fair one. The claimant stated that Rs. 1000/- per mensem was the proper compensation for the entire premises, and the amounts offered whether for the ground floor only or for the premises in its entirety as made by the Collector were not fair or proper.

(3.) In the petition filed by the claimant on 11-11-1947, giving his estimate of their amount of compensation it was mentioned that the documents to be relied upon by the claimant had been already filed before the Land Acquisition Collector when the case was pending before him and those records should be called for as they would be relevant and necessary at the time of the hearing of the matter by the Arbitrator.