IMPORTANT POINT
Acquisition of land – Parity has be maintained while fixing quantum of compensation.

JUDGMENT :

M.R. SHAH, J.

1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned common judgment and order dated 21.03.2022 passed by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh in R.F.A. No. 2086/2016 and other allied first appeals, by which the High Court has allowed the appeals preferred by the respondents herein and has dismissed the appeals preferred by the appellants herein-original claimants/landowners, the original claimants/landowners have preferred the present appeals.

2. The facts leading to the present appeals in a nutshell are as under:

That the lands situated at village Jharli, District Jhajjar, Haryana came to be acquired for Jhajjar Thermal Power Plant. Notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Act 1894’) came to be issued on 09.04.2007. Declaration under Section 6 of the Act, 1894 was issued on 13.11.2007. The Land Acquisition Collector declared the award under Section 11 of the Act, 1894 and determined and awarded compensation at Rs. 16,00,000/- per acre. The Reference Court enhanced the amount of compensation to Rs. 17,64,350/- per acre. The acquiring body/beneficiary as well as the original claimants/landowners both preferred appeals before the High Court challenging the judgment and award passed by the Reference Court, awarding compensation at Rs. 17,64,350/- per acre. By the impugned common judgment and order, the High Court has allowed the appeals preferred by the State/acquiring body and dismissed the appeals preferred by the original claimants/landowners and has reduced the amount of compensation to Rs. 16,00,000/- per acre, as determined and awarded by the Land Acquisition Collector. The impugned common judgment and order passed by the High Court is the subject matter of present appeals at the instance of the original claimants/landowners.

2.1 At this stage, it is required to be noted that in the present case the acquiring lands of village Jharli were on the west side of Bahu Road, Jhajjar, Haryana. Simultaneously, the lands of village Jharli situated on the east side of Bahu Road, Jhajjar, Haryana came to be acquired for Arawali Power Company Private Limited. The said lands were just opposite of the land acquired for Jhajjar Thermal Power Plant and in one case-in the case of Jagvir (appellant in Civil Appeal Nos. 7447- 7448/2022), the lands acquired for both the projects were out of the same Survey No. 73. For acquisition of the lands for Arawali Power Company Private Limited, notification under Section 4 of the Act, 1894 was issued on 16.01.2007. Declaration under Section 6 was issued on 12.04.2007. The Land Acquisition Collector determined and awarded compensation at Rs. 16,00,000/- per acre. The Reference Court also determined compensation at Rs. 16,00,000/- per acre. However, the High Court enhanced the amount of compensation to Rs. 29,00,400/- per acre. By common judgment and order dated 05.09.2017, this Court allowed the appeals preferred by Arawali Power Company Private Limited and dismissed the appeals preferred by the landowners/original claimants by determining compensation at Rs. 25,00,000/- per acre (Civil Appeal No. 8757 of 2016 and connected appeals, decided on 05.09.2017).

2.2 Before the High Court, at the time of hearing of the present appeals, the original claimants/landowners relied upon the decision of this Court in the case of Arawali Power Company Private Limited (supra). However, considering the observations made by this Court while awarding compensation at the rate of Rs. 25,00,000/- per acre that “in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case and not to be treated as precedent” the High Court has not followed the said judgment and has determined compensation at the rate of Rs. 16,00,000/- per acre, as determined by the Land Acquisition Collector. Hence, the present appeals at the instance of the landowners/original claimants.

3. Shri Shyam Divan, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the original claimant/la