Judgment

Santosh Hegde, J.-Leave granted in all these special leave petitions.

2. These appeals arise out of a common judgment dated 9.8.1996 deliv­ered in RSA No. 1972/88 and other connected appeals, by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh confirming the judgment of the first appellate court and decreeing the suits of the plaintiffs.

3. The plaintiffs, who are the respondents in these appeals, had filed suits for declaration and mandatory injunction against   .

 the appellant herein, namely, Jalandhar Improvement Trust (for short ‘the Trust’), to allot them plots in lieu of lands acquired from them. The trial Court in some cases decreed the suit and in others, dismissed the suit. In appeal, the first appellate court decreed all the suits and granted the relief prayed for. The Trust preferred second appeals before the High Court of Punjab and Haryana which confirmed the decree of the first appellate court, giving rise to these appeals. The claim of the respondents in all these appeals arises on the basis that they are all ‘local displaced persons’ who are entitled to a plot each in lieu of the lands acquired from them by the appellant-Trust, in view of the preferen