DHARAMBIR SINGH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY a common order, I shall be disposing of Regular First Appeals bearing Nos.2400,2402,2434, 2435, 2391 to 2395, 2739, 2757 and 2367 of 2005 filed by the claimants and 2279,2711 to 2722 of 2005 filed by U.T. Chandigarh, against the award passed by learned Additional District Judge, Chandigarh, dated 1.4.2005. The facts, however, are extracted from RFA No. 2400 of 2005 (Dharambir Singh and others v. Union of India).

(2.) IN brief, the facts of the case are that vide notification issued under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short, 'the Act'), dated 2.3.2001, land measuring 30 kanals 7 marlas (3.7937 acres) in village Burail and land measuring 11 kanals 18 marlas (1. 4875 acres) in village Jhumru, U.T, Chandigarh, was acquired for the public purpose, namely for the construction of Chandigarh Ludhiana Broad Guage, Railway Line. Follow up notification of declaration under Section 6 of the Act read with Section 17 (4) of the Act was issued on 5.3.2001.

(3.) PROVOKED by the inadequacy of compensation, the claimants/landowners filed objections under Section 18 of the Act, and prayed for awarding Rs. 1.25 crores per acre. 5. In reply, the learned counsel for respondent-Union Territory, Chandigarh, alleged that while announcing the award, all the aspects have been considered by the Collector, therefore, no further compensation should be enhanced. 6. In order to substantiate their respective claims, both the parties led their oral as well as documentary evidence. 7. The reference Court while relying upon the previous award rendered by the learned Addl. District Judge, Chandigarh, dated 10.10.2002 (Ex.P15) vide which land of village Jhumru, Nizampur, Burail was acquired on 3.7.1997 in which compensation @ Rs. 12,00,000/- per acre was awarded with an increase of 12% per annum from the date of notification 3.7.1997 to the present case notification dated 2.3.2001, assessed the market value of the acquired land of all the villages @ Rs. 17,46,000/- per acre besides awarding all other statutory benefits in terms of the provisions of the Amended Act. The award of the learned Addl. District Judge, Chandigarh, dated 1.4.2005 has been challenged by both the claimants and the respondent-U.T. Chandigarh by way of the present appeals in which the claimants have prayed for further enhancement of whereas the U.T, Chandigarh has prayed for reducing the amount of compensation. 8. Mr. J.V. Yadav, learned counsel appearing for the claimants/landowners has vehemently contended that the learned Courts below instead of relying upon the award Ex. P-15, should have relied upon the awards rendered vide judgments Exs. P-16 and P-17 i.e. the award passed in LAC Case No. 127 of 19.1.2001 (Amarjit Kaur v. Union Territory, Chandigarh), decided by Mr. R.C. Godara, the then learned Addl. District Judge, Chandigarh on 1.6.2002 and LAC Case No. 80 of 19.1.2001 (Jaswant Singh etc. v. Union of India) decided on 2.12.2002, because Exs. P-16 and P-17 pertain to the same acquisition. 9. Mr. Yadav, has further submitted that the reference which have been decided vide Exs. P-16 and P-17, have arisen out of the notification issued under Section 4 of the Act dated 20.8.1998, whereby the land measuring 35.20 acres in village Nizampur Burail,136.43 acres in village Nizampur Kumbra, 5.3 acres in village Kajheri and 6.21 acres in village Jhumru was acquired for a public purpose, namely for the development of Third Phase of U.T, Chandigarh. The Collector had awarded the compensation for the land of village Nizampur Kumbra @ Rs. 8,28,750/- per acre, @ Rs. 8,18,573/- per acre, for the land of village kajheri, @ Rs. 7,71,735/- per acre for the land of village Nizampur Burail @ Rs. 4,98,102/- per acre,for the land of village Jhumru which has been further enhanced by the reference Court at flat rate of Rs. 13,44,000/- per acre for land of all the four villages and Rs. 5,59,992/- per acre for the land having khadan. 10. Learned counsel for the claimants has further contended that the aforesaid acquisition pertaining to 20.8.1998 of the aforesaid four villages was further questioned by the claimants before this Court and has already been decided in RFA No. 3921 of 2007 on 10.2.2009 by Hon'ble Mr. Justice Rajesh Bindal, whereby the compensation has been enhanced from Rs. 13,44,000/- per acres to Rs. 17,32,000/- per acres for the land except Gair Mumkin, Nadi, Choe and Khadan. He has further submitted that since the value of the land of village Jhumru has already been settled by this Court in RFA No. 3921 of 2007 (O&M) titled as Arunash Chander Kaushik and others v. Union Territory, Chandigarh, for the acquisition pertaining to 20.8.1998 and if 12% increase per year is given for the present acquisition which took place on 2.3.2001, then it would come to Rs. 22,51,600/- per acre. 11. On the other hand, Mrs. Lisa Gill, learned counsel for Union Territory, Chandigarh, though does not dispute the fact that the awards of the reference Court Exs P-16 and P-17 are pertaining to the acquisition dated 20.8.1998 and has further been considered by this Court and compensation has been enhanced from Rs. 13,44,000/- to 17,32,000/- per acre, yet she contends that the value which has been assessed for the acquisition of 1998, is based upon the acquisition of 1991 in RFA No. 2326 of 1998 (Som Nath and others v. Union Territory, Chandigarh, decided on 3.9.2008, which pertains to the acquisition of land of village Jhumru of the notification dated 11.10.1991 acquired for the for public purposes, namely for the development of Third Phase of Union Territory, Chandigarh. 12. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and have thoughtfully considered their rival contentions. 13. I have found from the record that the acquisition dated 20.8.1998 of villages Nizampur Burail and Nizampur Kumbra, Kajheri and Jhumru was for the development of Third Phase of Union Territory, Chandigarh. In these cases, earlier decision rendered in RFA No. 727 of 2001 (Narinder Singh v. union Territory, Chandigarh), pertaining to the acquisition dated 3.7.1997 of village Nizampur Kumbra for development as Sector 51, Chandigarh, was relied upon whereby Rs. 15,46,450/- per acre was enhanced on which an increase of 12% was given and thus the compensation was assessed @ Rs. 17,32,000/- per acre. Similar is the position in the present cases in which the acquisition is pertaining to village Jhumru and Burail which had taken place on 2.3.2001. Since the rates of these two villages have already been settled by this Court in the cases of Amarjit Kaur and Jaswant Singh (Exs.P-16 and P-17) for the acquisition which took place on 20.8.1998, therefore, similar formula is to be applied for giving an increase of 12% over and above the amount of Rs. 17,32,000/- per acre which has been assessed vide notification dated 20.8.1998 and it comes to Rs. 22,51,600/- per acre. 14. I do not find any merit in the contention raised by learned counsel for the U.T.Chandigarh that the acquisition for the year 1991 cannot be made the basis for the purpose of assessing the compensation in the present cases because in the present cases, base is of the year 1998 which is apparent from the awards Exs. P-16 and P-17. Thus, the appeals filed by the claimants/landowners for the purpose of enhancement of compensation are allowed and for both the villages, the compensation of Rs. 22,51,600/- per acre is assessed as on 2.3.2001. The claimants/landowners shall also be entitled to all the statutory benefits in terms of the provisions of the Amended Act along-with costs of the appeals. Insofar as the appeals filed by the union Territory, Chandigarh, are concerned, these are dismissed, however, without any order as to costs. Appeals dismissed.