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2003 Supreme(SC) 495
2003(3) Supreme 688
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
(From Delhi High Court)
K.G. Balakrishnan & P. Venkatarama Reddi, JJ.
Virender Singh & Ors. -Appellants
versus
Union of India -Respondent
Civil Appeal No. 1322 of 1997
Decided on 22-4-2003
Counsel for the Parties :
For the Appellants : Dhruv Mehta, Mohit Chaudhry, S.P. Singh Shishodia, Balraj Devan, Advocates.
For the Respondent : H.L. Aggarwal, Sr. Advocate, Avatar Singh, D.S. Mehra, R.K. Rathore, A.S. Rawat, Advocates.
IMPORTANT POINT
In a land acquisition matter claimants would be entitled to interest on solatium.
Headnote:(i) Land Acquisition Act, 1894-Section 23-Market value of acquired land-16 Bighas and 10 Biswas of land acquired by notification published on 13.11.1959-Collector passed award fixing value at Rs. 6000/- per Bigha-Reference Court enhanced value and fixed at Rs. 10,000/- per Bigha and award was confirmed by High Court-Claimants appeal-High Court placed reliance on two sale deed whereby claimants sold 7.5 and 8 Bighas of land which was part of land notified for acquisition and that sale transaction took place a few months before award made by the Collector and sale price was Rs. 7500/- per bigha-In another award where land was acquired in same village on 19-10-1962, Collector had fixed market value at Rs. 12000/- per bigha and High Court had enhanced it to Rs. 32000/- per bigha-Two conflicting judgments of same High Court covering the field-Sale deeds referred to by High Court were not relied on either by claimant or by Govt. but were placed by vendees-Those sale deed would not furnish real indicia of market value of land-Value of land in question fixed at Rs. 20000/- per bigha.
Held : When we come to the judgment under appeal, apart from the award of the Civil Court in relation to the land which was substantially varied by the judgment in L.P.A. No. 156 of 1980, the High Court placed strong reliance on Exhibits A3 and A4 which are the sale deeds executed by the claimants themselves to the persons who figured as respondents before the Court. These sale deeds were executed in the months of March and April, 1967 just before the award was passed. Parts of land were sold at the rate of Rs.7,500/-per Bigha. True, as pointed out by the learned counsel for the respondent, the appellants did not tender any evidence to refute the sale value mentioned therein or to explain the circumstances in which such low price was charged. However, it must be noticed here that these sale deeds were neither relied upon by the claimants nor by the Government. They were evidently brought on record by the vendees who were respondents before the Civil Court. That is apparently the reason why the appellants did not consider it necessary to depose about those sale transactions. In our view, those sale transactions do not furnish real indicia of the market value of the land for the simple reason that the sales were effected at an advanced stage of land acquisition proceedings. Such sales rushed through, for whatever reason it be, just before the award came to be passed cannot be taken to reflect the true value of the land. Even if they are genuine, the bargaining power of the vendors who are statutorily compelled to part with the ownership and possession within close proximity of time would be limited. No reasonable and prudent purchaser would buy the land with full market value at that juncture, knowing fully well that the land is under immediate peril of acquisition. Therefore, it is not safe to place reliance on the sale deeds - Exhibits A3 and A4 for arriving at the market value of the land in question. If these sale deeds are excluded from consideration, what is left is only the award of the Civil Court in a previous reference case adverted to above which has been substantially varied by the High Court under the judgment which is now brought on record. Taking that judgment as the basis and giving due allowance to the rising prices between 1959 and 1962 and keeping in view the location of the land which according to the High Court, is quite far from the main road intervened by the lands of others, we are of the view that the market value of the land acquired could be reasonably fixed at Rs. 20,000 per Bigha. (Paras 5 & 6)
(ii) Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (as Amended by Amendment and Validation) Act, 1967-Section 4(3)-Interest at 6% awarded by Collector has to be allowed on market value as now determined in appeal-Claimants were entitled to interest on solatium also. (Para 7)
JUDGMENT
P. Venkatarama Reddi, J.-In this appeal by special leave, the correctness of the market value assessed by the Reference Court and affirmed by the High Court of Delhi is in question. An extent of 16 Bighas and 10 Biswas of land in Khasra Nos. 478/14 etc., situated in Village Sadhora Khurd near Delhi belonging to the appellants was acquired together with other lands by means of a notification published on 13.11.1959 under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act. The acquisition was made for the purpose of planned development of Delhi. Declaration under Section 6 was made on 19.7.1965. An award was passed on 19.7.1967 by the Collector fixing the market value of the land in question at Rs. 6,000 per Bigha, classifying the same as B Block. The Reference Court, namely, The Additional District Judge, Delhi enhanced the market value and fixed the same at Rs. 10,000 per Bigha for the land in B Block. Appeals were filed by the Union of India and cross objections were filed by the claimants aggrieved by the determination made by the Reference Court. The High Court, by the impugned judgment dated 15.12.1995, dismissed the appeals and the cross objections thereby confirming the award of the Reference Court. Against this judgment the aggrieved landholders have preferred this appeal.
2. The Reference Court as well as the High Court rightly held that the decision of this Court in Shri Prabhu Dayal vs. Union of India [1995 Supp (4) SCC 221] in respect of acquisition made on 15.5.1945 fixing the market value at Rs.5,700 per Bigha was of no assistance in fixing the market value of the land acquired fourteen years later, especially in the absence of evidence on record as to the extent of development that had taken place between 1945 and 1959. The High Court placed strong reliance on two sale deeds dated 15th March, 1967 and 8th April, 1967 whereby the claimants sold 7.5 and 8 Bighas respectively to the persons who figured as respondents before the Reference Court. The land sold is part of the land notified for acquisition and the sale transactions took place a few months before the award came to be passed by the Land Acquisition Collector. The sale price, as per sale deeds, works out to Rs.7,500 per Bigha. The said land was purchased, according to the evidence tendered by the vendees, for the purpose of developing it as colony. In the face of these sale deeds executed by the claimants themselves, after a period of about seven years from the date of notification, the value of Rs. 10,000 per Bigha fixed by the Reference Court was held to be adequate compensation. Apart from these two sale deeds (Ex. A 3 & A 4), the High Court also relied upon the award of the Reference Court dated 26.5.1967 in Land Acquisition Case No. 242 of 1965 pertaining to the land acquired under a notification dated 19.10.1962 in the same village. In that award, the High Court fixed the market value as on 19.10.1962 at Rs.10,000 per Bigha. The High Court observed:
"Even relying upon this piece of evidence, we are of the view that no interference is called for with the impugned award in which claimants have been allowed compensation holding Rs.10,000 per Bigha to be the fair market value of the acquired land of the claimants as on 13.11.1959, which was found to be located in Block B , much behind and towards back of the main road. Thus, we are of the considered view that claimants are not entitled to any further enhancement in the amount of compensation."
3. The learned counsel for the appellants has brought to our notice that the award of the Reference Court in which Rs.12,000 per Bigha was fixed for the land acquired on 19.10.1962 has since been superseded by the judgment of the Delhi High Court which enhanced the market value from Rs.12,000 to Rs.32,000 for the lands situated in B Block. The learned counsel contends that even after giving the allowance for the appreciation of the value between 1959 and 1962, the compensation could be reasonably fixed at Rs.
