RAJMAL Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) As common questions of law and facts are involved in these petitions, they are decided by this common order.

(2.) In village Mandafia Sanwaliyaji, there is a temple of Lord Krishna. The management of the temple and its properties is under the Board constituted under Shri Sanwalijaji Temple Act, 1992. A notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short 'the Act (hereinafter) was issued on 10-7-1996 and was published in the Rajasthan Gazette dated 27-7-1996 for acquisition of lands and buildings for extension of temple Shri Sanwaliyaji and for construction of temple premises. A notification under Section 4(1) of the Act was published in the newspapers Pratah Kal published from Udaipur, dated 4-9-1996, Lalkar published from Chittorgarh dated 5-9-1996 and Rajasthan Kiran published from Nimbaheda dated 12-9-1996. A declaration under Section 6 read with Section 17 of the Act was published in Rajashtan Gazette dated 18-9-1996, in the newspapers ,Jan Nayak dated 21-9-1996 and Rajasthan Patrika dated 9-10-1996. Notices under Section 9 of the Act were issued to some of the owners of the properties under acquisition.

(3.) In view of Section 4 as amended by the Land Acquisition (Amendment) Act, 1984, three modes of publications are prescribed by the statute, namely, (a) publication in the Official Gazette; (b) publication in two daily newspapers circulating in the locality, one of which dailies must be in the regional language; and, lastly (c) publication of the substance of notification at a convenient place in the locality. Unless all the aforesaid modes of publication are resorted to, the notification would be clearly invalid and inoperative, as under the statute the last of dates of such publications shall be the date of publication of the notification. The publication of the notification by all the three modes is a mandatory requirement under Section 4(1) of the Act.