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Andhra Pradesh High Court
Judges : G.RADHA KRISHNA RAO, IYYAPU PANDURANGA RAO
Sub-Collector and Land Acquisition Officer - Appellant
Versus
N.Mahaboob Saheb - Respondent
Decided On : 02-05-92
LAND ACQUISITION - COMPENSATION - MARKET VALUE - DETERMINATION - POTENTIAL VALUE - USE TO WHICH LAND WILL BE PUT IN FUTURE - COMPARABLE SALES - BASIC VALUE REGISTER - NOT A RELIABLE GUIDE - ADDITIONAL SOLATIUM AND INTEREST - ENTITLEMENT.
Fact of the Case:
Different claimants filed different appeals against the same judgment contending that the compensation granted by the District Judge is too low. Two separate Notifications under Section 4 (1) of the Land Acquisition Act ( the Act for brevity) have issued for acquisition of land measuring about Ac. 33. 12 cents and Ac. 88 cents situate at Moolasagaram village within the Municipal limits of Nandyal town for the purpose of Sreenivasanagar Co-operative House Building Society at Nandyal, on a requisition made by the said Society on 26-10-1971. Possession of the entire land covered by the two Notifications was taken on 13-1-1975.
Finding of the Court:
The Court found that the market value of the land acquired would be Rs. 300. 00 per a cent in the year 1966 as already found by the Land Acquisition Officer in Ex. B-7. The Court further observed that in all fairness, the Land Acquisition Officer should have treated the land acquired on the same analogy considering its potential value and determined the compensation with reference to the above said land. The Court also held that the basic value register is not a reliable guide for determining the market value of the land.
Issues: 1. Whether the market value of the land acquired should be determined on the basis of its potential value and the use to which it will be put in future? 2. Whether the basic value register is a reliable guide for determining the market value of the land? 3. Whether the claimants are entitled to additional solatium and interest?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. Yes, the market value of the land acquired should be determined on the basis of its potential value and the use to which it will be put in future. The Court observed that in the instant case, the land was acquired for the purpose of building houses by the Sreenivasanagar Co-operative Society and that the very purpose for which the land was acquired has already been executed and many houses have come up and so the value of the prices of the land have gone in that locality. 2. No, the basic value register is not a reliable guide for determining the market value of the land. The Court held that the rates shown in the basic value register cannot reflect the true value of the lands and it cannot reflect the true value of the lands and it cannot be taken into consideration. In fixing the market value, the Court has to take into account the price which a willing purchaser is prepared to pay to a willing vendor. 3. Yes, the claimants are entitled to additional solatium and interest. The Court held that since the judgment in this case has been delivered after 20-8-1982, following the view expressed by the Supreme Court in Union of India v. Prithpal Singh, AIR 1989 SC 1933, the claimants are entitled to interest and the additional solatium.
Final Decision: The Court allowed the appeals filed by the State in part and fixed the market value of the lands at 375/- per a cent of land. The Court dismissed the appeals filed by the claimants. The Court also dismissed the cross-objections. No costs.
( 2 ) TWO separate Notifications under Section 4 (1) of the Land Acquisition Act ( the Act for brevity) have issued for acquisition of land measuring about Ac. 33. 12 cents and Ac. 88 cents situate at Moolasagaram village within the Municipal limits of Nandyal town for the purpose of Sreenivasanagar Co-operative House Building Society at Nandyal, on a requisition made by the said Society on 26-10-1971. Possession of the entire land covered by the two Notifications was taken on 13-1-1975. The Land Acquisition Officer, Nandyal, by his award dated 10-10-1975 granted uniform compensation at Rs. 13,000. 00 per acre. Dissatisfied with the quantum of compensation awarded by the Land Acquisition Officer, some of the land owners requested him to refer the matter to the Civil Court under Section 18 of the Act, claiming compensation at Rs. l,500. 00 per a cent. Some have claimed at Rs. 4,000. 00 per a cent. In all 84 claimants have filed O. P. No. 15 of 1979 before the II Additional District Judge, Kurnool. In support of their case the claimants have examined 21 witnesses and marked Exts. B-1 to A-17.
( 3 ) P. WS. 1 and 2 are teachers who purchased Ac. 0-53 cents and Ac. 0-60 cents respectively under Exs. A-1 and A-2 for the purpose of construction of houses in the year 1976 and sold the same after dividing it into plots. P. W. 3 is a Co-operative Sub-Registrar who executed the sale deed Ex. A-3 dated 4-10-1978 for the purpose of T. T. D. Kalyana Mandapam. The land is of an extent of Ac. 1-30 cents abutting Srinivasa Nagar. P. W. 4 is the President of the Merchants Cooperative House Building Society, Nandyal. This Society purchased 13 acres of land to the east of Atkakur-Koilkuntla road at a distance of 2000 Feet. This land was purchased from 20 or 21 persons under Exs. A-4 to A-7 in the year 1977 @ Rs. 39,000. 00 per acre. P. W. 5 is the Manager of Srinivasanagar Co-operative House Building Society. He filed Exs. A-8 and A-9 which are topographical detailed plans of the colony. He also filed Exs. A-10 to A-12 which are the registration extracts of sale deeds and Ex. A-13, certified copy of the sale certificate relating to comparable sales near the land acquired. R. W. 5 is the President of Padmasali Sangham, Nandyal. He purchased Ac. 0-91 cents in S. No. 794/2 under a registered sale deed dated 12-12-1973 for a consideration of rs. 7,000/ - Ex. B-8 is the original sale deed. This land is at the entrance of Srinivasanagar Colony. R. W. 9 is an Upper Division Clerk in the Sub-Collector s Office, Nandyal and he produced Award No. 8/75 dated 19-9-1975 passed by the Land Acquisition Officer in connection with the acquisition of 30 cents of land in S. No. 616/2 in Nandyal town for the purpose of a Post Office near the Railway Station. It is marked as Ex. B-9, R. W. 10 is the owner of an adjacent land. He sold 3 cents of his land in S. No. 761 at Rs. 1000. 00 per cent to one Bali Reddy under a registered sale deed dated 18-9-1976 under Ex. B-10. He also sold 2 cents of land at the same rate under Ex. B-11, Exs. B-12 and B-13 are the certified extracts of sale deeds. R. W. 13 is a business man. He purchased 4 cents of land from Kasubai on 25-3-1974 under Ex. B-13 for Rs. 10,000. 00. R. W. 15 offered to pay Rs. 3,000. 00 per cent of land in the year 1969 from the father of claimant No. 48. R. W. 16 is examined to speak about the market value of the land acquired between Rs. 2000. 00 to Rs. 2500. 00per a cent. R. W. 18 owns 50 acres of land. One Kummari Narayana had mortgaged 4 cents of his land in Nandyal town to him under a registered mortgage deed. He sold the said under Ex. B-14 at Rs. 2,000. 00 per a cent. The other witnesses i. e. R. Ws. 1, 2, 3, 4, 7
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