Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Oct 6: High Court has allowed the appeals filed by the Housing Board (HB) challenging writ court judgment whereby land acquisition process was set aside and directed the Board to proceed ahead with the acquisition without any further delay and determine the compensation to the land owners.
A batch of appeals was filed by the Board challenging the writ court judgment whereby land acquisition proceedings were quashed leaving it free to the Board to proceed with the land acquisition proceedings after complying with the procedure prescribed under Sections 39 to 42 of the State Land Acquisition Act.
The appellant-Board for taking measures, make schemes and carry out housing accommodation, residential and office accommodations for the public sector and in pursuance of this objective and with a view to lay out a housing colony to meet the need for housing accommodation, the Board placed an indent with the Collector Land Acquisition, J&K Housing Board, for acquiring a chunk of land measuring 3271 kanals in village Meen Charkan and village Bari of District Samba.
Justice Sanjeev Kumar and Justice Puneet Gupta allowed all these appeals of Board and directed the Collector Land Acquisition, J&K Housing Board to proceed ahead with the land acquisition proceedings from the stage at which these were quashed.
Court further directed to pass the final award without any further delay and determine compensation by reference to the value of land under acquisition in the year 2023 by strictly following the provisions of State Land Acquisition Act.
DB said that the judgment of the writ court is not sustainable and, therefore, deserves to be set aside taking note of the fact that the acquisition proceedings initiated by the Collector Land Acquisition by issuing 4(1) notification followed by several other notifications under the State Land Acquisition Act could not be taken to logical end due to the land owners approaching the Court and getting the said proceedings quashed by the Writ Court.
Court has also made it clear that the process of acquisition in the instant case was initiated by the collector by issuing notification under Section 4(1) of the State Land Acquisition Act on 12.09.2011 and that would be the relevant date in terms of Section 11(1)(a) for determination of value of the land for the purposes of assessment of compensation.
Court has also recorded that jurisdiction vested in the High Court under Article 226 is not only extraordinary but is also equitable. While upholding the proceedings initiated by the Collector under the State Land Acquisition Act and permitted him to go ahead with such proceedings to culminate them into passing of final award, court also deemed it appropriate and in the interest of justice to direct the Collector to work out the compensation by reference to the value of land under acquisition in the year 2023, of course, as per the provisions of State Land Acquisition Act in order to serve the justice.
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