MAM CHAND Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This judgment will dispose of R.F.A. Nos. 16 of 1969, 15 of 1969, 421 of 1968, 22 of 1969, 23 of 1969, 417 of 1968, 20 of 1969, 413 of 1968, 17 of 1969, 423 of 1968, 21 of 1969, 419 of 1968, 31 of 1969, 420 of 1968, 32 of 1969, 416 of 1968, 18 of 1969, 418 of 1968, 25 of 1969, 422 of 1968, 480 of 1968, 27 of 1969, 479 of 1968, 26 of 1969, 481 of 1968, 28 of 1969, 30 of 1969, 450 of 1968, 19 of 1969 and 415 of 1968, which arise out of the same judgment of the learned Additional District Judge, Gurgaon, dated June 21, 1968, whereby number of reference under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, hereinafter called 'the Act', were disposed of.

(2.) Pursuant to a notification under Section 4 of the Act, dated August 10, 1966, land measuring 115.69 acres situate at village Majesar, Tehsil Ballabgarh, District Gurgaon, was acquired by the State Government for Urban Estate, Faridabad. The Land Acquisition Collector classified the land into three categories, namely, Chahi, Ghair Mumkin and Nirmot, for the purposes of assessing its market price and assessed the same at the rate of Rs. 50/- per marla for Gora Deh (land situate in the close vicinity of the village), cultivated land at Rs. 45/- and Ghair Mumkin land at Rs. 32/- per marla. Dissatisfied with the award, the landowners got separate references made under Section 18 of the Act claiming the market price of the suit land at the rate of Rs. 10/- per square yard. They also claimed enhanced compensation for the wells situate in the land and for the severance and fragmentation of the rest of their areas caused by the said acquisition, but for the purposes of this appeal we are only concerned with the market price assessed for the land subject matter of the acquisition. The learned Additional District Judge after recording evidence of the parties assessed the market price of the land adjacent to the road connecting the village with the G.T. Road at the rate of Rs. 150/-, for the cultivated land at the rate of Rs. 100/- and for the uncultivated land at the rate of Rs. 75/- per marla. Still dissatisfied, the landowners have come up to this Court to claim the market price of the land at the rate of Rs. 6/- per square yard whereas the State has filed appeals R.F.A. Nos. 28 of 1969, 23 of 1969, 18 of 1969, 20 of 1969, 16 of 1969, 26 of 1969, 30 of 1969, 19 of 1969, 15 of 1969, 17 of 1969, 27 of 1969, 32 of 1969, 22 of 1969, 21 of 1969, 25 of 1969, 24 of 1969, 31 of 1969 and 19 of 1969, for restoration of the award of the Land Acquisition Collector.

(3.) At the outset the learned counsel for the appellant contended that the Collector as well as the Additional District Judge committed an error in assessing the market price taking the land in dispute as agricultural land. According to the learned counsel, the land in dispute has great potentials of its being used for industrial and residential purposes and that most of the lands around the land in dispute have already been developed as residential and industrial areas. To substantiate his argument he referred to the statements of A.W.2 Krishan Lal and R.W.1 Munshi Ram Qanungo. Krishan Lal deposed that the land in dispute has been acquired for the development of Sector 25 of the Urban Estate, Faridabad. Munshi Ram R.W. admitted that the new Township of Faridabad which is fully developed is adjacent to the land now acquired. A reference to the master-plan of the New Township of Faridabad would also show that the land in dispute is included in the said plan. The contention of the learned counsel, therefore, appears to be well founded. Even the learned Advocate General, Haryana, did not contest the claim of the appellants that the market price of the land in dispute is to be assessed keeping in view its potential for being used as residential area.