ORDER :

Permission to file the special leave petitions is granted.

Delay in filing the special leave petitions and application for substitution is condoned.

Application(s) for substitution are allowed and LRs are brought on record.

1. Leave granted. All these appeals arise out of the common and identical events whereby lands of the Appellants were acquired by the Government of Haryana under the provisions of Land Acquisition Act. The Appellants are claiming enhanced compensation on the basis of judgment of the Division Bench of the High Court in the same fact situation. Therefore, these appeals are heard and decided by this common order for the sake of convenience. However, we shall take the facts from Civil Appeal Nos. 6599-6601/2014.

2. The Government of Haryana sought to acquire 132.06 acres of land vide notification dated 22.8.1988 Under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the Act). Thereafter, declaration Under Section 6 of the Act was issued and award was passed on 30.3.1990. The Land Acquisition Collector assessed the compensation for the Chahi land @ Rs. 3,50,000/- per acre, regarding Gair Mumkin etc. Compensation was assessed @ Rs. 1,50,000/- per acre. Applications were moved by the land owners/appellants herein Under Section 18 of the Act for enhancement of compensation. Vide award dated 14.1.1992, the Additional District Judge awarded compensation at the rate of Rs. 101/- per square yard for the entire land.

3. The Appellants were not satisfied and they filed Regular First Appeal before the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh. The State also filed appeals against the enhancement of compensation by the Court below. All these appeals came up for consideration before the learned Single Judge of the High Court and vide common judgment dated 24.12.1993, passed in R.F.A. No. 1370 of 1992 (Krishan Lal v. State of Haryana and Anr.), the High Court dismissed all the appeals filed by the land owners and also the State of Haryana.

4. Against the above said order, the similarly situated land owners went in appeal and vide judgment dated 27.7.2005 passed in LPA No. 920 of 1994 titled as Horam v. Haryana State and Anr., a Division Bench of the High Court awarded compensation @ Rs.200/- per square yard for the land under acquisition.

5. The Appellants in all these appeals had preferred the Regular First Appeals which were heard and dismissed by the learned Single Judge along with appeals of other persons. However, they did not challenge the order by preferring further appeal before the Division Bench, though, similarly situated land owners had preferred the appeals and in their cases, compensation was enhanced to Rs. 200/- per square yard. The aforesaid rate of Rs. 200/- per sq. yard has been upheld by this Court in Ajay Pal v. State of Haryana and Ors. (Civil Appeal No. 610 of 2012).

6. It is the case of the Appellants that due to their financial weak condition, they could not file the Letter Patent Appeals (LPAs) before the Division Bench and on coming to know of the judgment dated 27.7.2005 rendered by the Division Bench, they also filed their appeals. However, since there was delay in preferring these appeals, the High Court has refused to condone the delay and dismissed the LPAs.

7. Against the orders passed by the High Court, the Appellants have filed these proceedings.

8. No doubt, there is a long delay in filing the appeals. However, we find that it is a case of payment of compensation to these Appellants who were the land owners and which land was taken away by compulsory acquisition. However, land owners whose lands were taken over by the same notification, have been able to get the compensation (a) Rs. 200/- per square yard whereas the compensation given to the Appellants is @ Rs. 101 per square yard for their entire land.

9. It is also not in dispute that the Appellants are agriculturists. Their averment that they could not prefer the LPAs because of their financial weak condition has