The Government can direct that the provisions of S. 5-A shall not apply only after the notification under S. 4 is issued, that it is incumbent upon the Government also to publish that direction in the Gazette and that as in the present case the direction was given prior to the notification under S. 4 and as it was not duly published in the Gazette the said direction was illegal.

SUBBA RAO, C.J. :- This is an appeal against the order of our learned brother Umamaheswaram J., dismissing the application filed by the appellant under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India to issue a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writ to restrain the respondents from taking further proceedings in pursuance of G. O. R. No. 916 Development dated 8th December, 1952.

2. The Guntur Co-operative House Construction Society Ltd., was formed in 1949, for the purpose of acquiring lands and constructing houses for its members on a co-operative basis. For the purpose of building houses, the Society approached the Government for acquiring 8 acres 54 cents under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act). The Registrar of Co-operative Societies submitted to the Government a draft declaration under S. 6 of the Act for approval and for publication.

On 8th December, 1952, the Government of Madras approved the said drafts and requested the Superintendent of the Government Press to publish the same under S. 4 (1) of the Act in successive issues of the Fort St. George Gazette. By the same order, the Government accepted the view that the acquisition of the lands was an urgent one and directed that the provisions of S. 5-A of the Act would not apply to the said acquisition. Pursuant to the said order, on 24th December, 1952, a notification was issued under S. 4 (1) of the Act to the effect that the aforesaid lands were needed for a public purpose, namely, for the construction of houses and that the Special Land Acquisition Officer was authorised to exercise the powers conferred by S. 4 (2) of the Act.

Notwithstanding the order dated 8th December, 1952 exempting the acquisition in question from the operation of S. 5-A of the Act, presumably by some oversight, the notification used the usual form and appointed the Special Land Acquisition Officer, Co-operative Housing Schemes, to perform the functions of a Collector under S. 5-A of the Act. The appellant filed objections under S. 5-A to the proposed acquisition.

But the Government, without deciding those objections, issued a notification on 31st December, 1952 under S. 6 of the Act declaring that the aforesaid lands were needed for a public purpose and appointing the Special Land Acquisition Officer, Co-operative Housing Schemes to perform the functions of a Collector under the Act and to take possession of the lands under S. 17 (1). Pursuant to the said notification, the Special Land Acquisition Officer was taking further steps to acquire the lands.

In the aforesaid circumstances, the writ was filed to issue an order prohibiting the Government of the State of Andhra represented by the Special Land Acquisition Officer, Co-operative Housing Schemes from proceeding further in the matter of acquisition.

3. It was, inter alia, contended before the learned Judge that, as the direction by the Government exempting the acquisition from the operation of S. 5-A of the Act was not published in the Gazette, the said direction was not in compliance with S. 17(4) of the Act and was, therefore, invalid. The learned Judge negatived the contention and held that the said direction was in compliance with the provisions of S. 17 (4).

4. Mr. Venkatarama Sastri, learned counsel for the appellant, raised before us the same contention, which he had failed to substantiate before the learned Judge. To appreciate his contention, the relevant provisions of the Act may be read;

Section 4 (1).- "Whenever it appears to the appropriate Government that land in any locality is needed or is likely to be needed for any public purpose, a notification to that effect shall be published in the Official Gazette and the Collector shall cause public notice of the substance of such notification to be given at convenient places in the said locality.

Section 6 (1).- "Subject to the provisions of Part VII of this Act, when the appropriate Government is satisfied after considering the report, if any, m