MANGAT RAM @ MANGAT SINGH Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS order shall dispose of RFA No. 1224 of 1986 titled Ram Saran and others v. State of Haryana, RFA No. 1649 of 1986 titled Mangat Ram and another v. State of Haryana, RFA No. 1654 of 1986 titled Rama Rani v. State of Haryana and RFA No. 1777 of 1986 titled Dropti Devi widow of Jati Ram and others v. State of Haryana. In all these cases, the notification acquiring the land is one and the same. The award as well as the judgment of the reference Court are also common. The claimant-appellants have filed the instant appeals under Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for brevity, 'the Act') challenging the order dated 29.11.1985 passed by the Additional District Judge, Kurukshetra and seeking further enhancement in respect of the acquired land, the structures and other items.

(2.) BRIEF facts of the case necessary for disposal of the instant appeals are that notification under Section 4 of the Act was issued expressing the intention of the respondent-State to acquire land measuring 69 kanals situated at village Ratgal for the construction of a bus stand at Kurukshetra. On 20.12.1980, the possession of the land was taken. The Land Acquisition Collector, Thanesar announced the award on 2.9.1981 and awarded compensation for the acquired land which ranged between Rs. 15,000/- per acre to Rs. 40,000/- per acre depending upon the quality of the land. For the Chahi land, the compensation awarded was Rs. 30,000/- and for Gair Mumnkin Abadi land, Rs. 40,000/- per acre was the rate fixed. The claimant-appellants were also awarded variation charges to the extent of 5% as the acquired land was adjacent to the Abadi of the town. Some compensation was awarded in lieu of some trees and building structures which were existing on the acquired land. The Land Acquisition Collector also awarded solatium at the rate of 15 per cent. Feeling dissatisfied, the claimant-appellants sought references under Section 18 of the Act which were forwarded by the Land Acquisition Collector to the learned Additional District Judge, Kurukshetra. The learned Additional District Judge after taking into consideration the oral as well as the documentary evidence came to the conclusion that the claimant-appellants were entitled to award of Rs. 65,600/- per acre.

(3.) IN order to assess the market value, the learned Additional District Judge took into account sale instances Exhibit A-14, A-85 and A-86 which were in respect of sales made before the date of notification issued under Section 4. The claimant-appellants have produced sale instances Exhibit A-16, A-17, A-28 and A-87 in addition to the above-referred sale instances, but those were ignored by the learned Additional District Judge by observing that those sale instances were in fact in respect of small pieces of land. Even in respect of the sale instances Exhibit A-14, A-85, A-86 and A-100, considered by the learned Additional District Judge, the average of the sale instances was worked out and thereafter a cut of one-third was imposed in order to reach the conclusion that the market value of the acquired land would be Rs. 65,600/- per acre. The consideration of the afore-mentioned sale instance is reflected in para 24 of the judgment of the Additional District Judge and the same reads as under :-