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2003 DIGILAW 1342 (PNJ)

State of Punjab v. Nek Singh

2003-09-24

ASHUTOSH MOHUNTA

body2003
JUDGMENT Ashutosh Mohunta, J. - This judgment shall dispose of R.F.A. Nos. 46, 48 and 50 of 1988 as well as Cross Objection Nos. 85, 86 and 87-CII of 1988 in R.F.A. Nos. 47, 49 and 51 of 1988 respectively as common question of law and facts arises in all these cases. 2. The aforementioned appeals have been filed against the judgment of the Additional District Judge (III), Sangrur, dated 3.10.1987 by which compensation was awarded to the land owners at the rate of Rs. 12,000/- per acre in respect of Nehri land and Rs. 8,000/- per acre in respect of Barani and Gair Mumkin land. The land owners were also held entitled to statutory benefits under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the Act). 3. Briefly the facts of the case are that land measuring 2.88 acres situated in the area of village Ladal, Tehsil Sunam, District Sangrur, was intended to be acquired by the State of Punjab for the construction of Gidrani Link Drain No. 2 and for this purpose notification under Section 4 of the Act was published on 20.1.1981. Declaration to acquire the said land was issued under Section 6 of the Act on 11.6.1982. The Land Acquisition Collector after taking into consideration the relevant material produced by both the sides awarded compensation vide his award dated 28.11.1984 at the following rates :- Nehri Rs. 8900/- per acre. Barani Rs. 5600/- per acre. Gair Mumkin Rs. 5600/- per acre. 4. Dissatisfied with the award of the Land Acquisition Collector the land owners filed Reference under Section 18 of the Act for enhancement of compensation. It was contended on behalf of the land owners that the Land Acquisition Collector did not take into consideration the market value prevailing in the area as also the fact that the lands acquired were of very high quality and were very productive agriculturally. Compensation at the rate of Rs. 80/- per acre was demanded by the land owners. It was further averred by the land owners that the acquired land was near the town of Sunam and on the main road and, thus, had a lot of potential value for being used for residential purposes. Compensation at the rate of Rs. 80/- per acre was demanded by the land owners. It was further averred by the land owners that the acquired land was near the town of Sunam and on the main road and, thus, had a lot of potential value for being used for residential purposes. The Additional District Judge, Sangrur, after taking into consideration all the relevant material placed before him by the State as well as by the land owners determined the market value of the acquired land at the rate of Rs. 12,000/- per acre for Nehri land and Rs. 8,000/- per acre for Barani and Gair Mumkin land. It is against this judgment that the State has filed the present appeals wherein it has been prayed that the award of the Land Acquisition Collector should have been upheld and that of the Additional District Judge, Sangrur, should be set aside. On the other hand, Cross Objections have been filed by the land owners in R.F.A. Nos. 47, 49 and 51 of 1988 wherein the land owners have claimed compensation of Rs. 38,000/- over and above what has been awarded by the Additional District Judge, Sangrur. 5. Thus, the short question that arises in the present case is - What was the market value of the acquired land at the time of issuance of notification under Section 4 of the Act ? 6. I have gone through the evidence of sale transactions produced by both the sides before the Reference Court. Ex.P1 is a copy of sale deed by which 10 kanals 7 marlas of land was sold for a consideration of Rs. 24,000/-. Karnail Singh AW1 who purchased the aforesaid land has admitted that the land is at a distance of bout 35 killas from the acquired land. The sale took place on 20.8.1981. The claimants also relied on Ex.A2 which is copy of a sale deed by which 16 kanals of land was purchased for Rs. 40,000/- on 24.5.1982 by Mohinder Singh AW2. As per this sale deed the average price of the land comes to Rs. 20,000/- per acre. The land sold vide Ex.A2 is at a distance of one and a half kilometers from the acquired land. 40,000/- on 24.5.1982 by Mohinder Singh AW2. As per this sale deed the average price of the land comes to Rs. 20,000/- per acre. The land sold vide Ex.A2 is at a distance of one and a half kilometers from the acquired land. A perusal of the aforesaid sale transactions clearly show that not only were the lands which were subject matter of Ex.P1 and A2 far away from the acquired land but also the sales took place much after the issuance of notification under Section 4 of the Act. Thus, both the sale deeds cannot be relied upon for the purpose of determining the market value. 7. On other hand, the State has produced copies of sale deed Exs. R2 and R3 and the plan Ex.R1. A perusal of the site plan shows that the lands which were subject matter of Exs.R2 and R3 were far away from the acquired land and, thus, these sale deeds also cannot be relied upon for the purpose of determining the market value of the acquired land. 8. In the absence of any cogent evidence led by either side, I have to rely on the statements of the witnesses. Hans Raj, Patwari, RW1 who is a witness for the State has admitted that the land of the claimants is on both sides of the drain and no bridge has been providmd to the claimants near the land. It has further been stated that as a result of the bifurcation of the holdings of the land owners, they have been adversely effected for the purpose of irrigating and cultivating their fields and also for the purpose of going to their fields. Thus, by virtue of the present acquisition the holdings of the land owners have been bifurcated for which they are entitled to compensation of more than what was awarded by the Land Acquisition Collector. Apart from the above, the Additional District Judge has awarded higher compensation on the ground that the price of the agricultural land in the vicinity of the acquired land were rising and, thus, compensation at the rate of Rs. 12,000/- per acre for Nehri land and Rs. 8,000/- per acre for Barani and Gair Mumkin land has been awarded. The State has not been able to make out any case for lowering the compensation as awarded by the Additional District Judge, Sangrur. 9. 12,000/- per acre for Nehri land and Rs. 8,000/- per acre for Barani and Gair Mumkin land has been awarded. The State has not been able to make out any case for lowering the compensation as awarded by the Additional District Judge, Sangrur. 9. On the other hand, the land owners have also not brought out any cogent evidence by which enhanced compensation could be granted. The sale deeds relied upon by the land owners are of no help of them because of the fact that not only the lands in the sale deeds relied upon by the claimants were far away from the acquired land but also because both the sale deeds Exs.P1 and A2 were after the issuance of notification under Section 4 of the Act. Thus, the claimants are also not entitled to any enhancement. In view of the above, the appeals filed by the State as well as the Cross Objections filed by the land owners are dismissed. Appeals dismissed.