The importance of contemporaneous sale transactions and the potential unreliability of evidence with a gap of more than four to five years.

JUDGMENT :

(A.S. Supehia, J.)

ORDER IN FIRST APPEAL Nos.1316 to 1323, 1325 to 1327 & 1329 to 1330 of 2015

1. These First Appeals emanate from judgment and award dated 21.2.2015 passed by learned Senior Civil Judge, Kadi, District-Mehsana, in Land Acquisition Reference Cases Nos.1458 to 1465, 1467, 1469, 1470 & 1472 of 2013 with Land Acquisition Reference No.1626 of 2013. Land Reference Cases arise out of the acquisition of land situated at Village-Agol, Taluka-Kadi, District-Mehsana, by the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited for the purpose of construction of canal of Narmada Yojana. The process of acquisition of land was initiated by issuance of Notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter for the sake of brevity and convenience referred to as “the Act”) on 31.1.2012 and publication of Notification under Section 6 of the Act on 31.3.2012. Thereafter, the award under Section 11 of the Act was passed on 28.2.2013, whereby Special Land Acquisition Officer awarded compensation at Rs.15.88 per sq.mtr. Being aggrieved, the claimants preferred afore-noted reference cases under Section 18 of the Act seeking enhanced compensation of Rs.1000/- per sq.mtr. The Reference Court by impugned judgment and award awarded additional compensation of Rs.856/- per sq.mtr. over and above the compensation awarded by the Special Land Acquisition Officer and also ordered that they are entitled to get compensation at the rate of 12% on additional amount of compensation so awarded as per provisions of Section 23 (1-A) of the Act, and solatium at the rate of 30% and running interest at the rate of 9%p.a. from the date of taking over the possession or from the date of issuance of notification under Section 4 of the Act, whichever is earlier and, thereafter, at the rate of 15% p.a. on aggregated amount i.e. additional awarded solatium was ordered. Accordingly, present First Appeals under Section 54 of the Act read with Section 96 of Civil Procedure Code, 1908 have been filed.

2. Learned AGP appearing for the acquiring body, at the outset, has submitted that the award of compensation by the Reference Court is primarily based on consideration of sale instances below Exh.13 to 22. It is submitted that the sale instances or the Sale Deeds could not have been relied upon by the Reference Court while determining the compensation since the Sale Deeds pertain to small parcels of land, though of the same village, but were executed on 19.9.2011 i.e. prior to approximately four months from the date of issuance of Notification under Section 4 of the Act i.e. on 31.1.2012. It is also submitted that the Sale Deed is about the small parcel of land and, hence, the said sale instances could not have been relied while determining the amount of compensation. It is further submitted that the Reference Court has fallen in error in determining the average price of Rs.945/- and, thereafter, incorrectly deducted 10% from such amount. It is submitted that the land acquired in the present cases are consisting of very large area and, hence, no reliance could have been placed on sale instances. He further submitted that, in fact, the Land Acquisition Officer had placed reliance on the judgment and award dated 12.3.2012 (Exh.30), rendered for the land acquired from the very same village, wherein the amount of compensation was awarded at the rate of Rs.63/- per sq.mtr. Thus, it is submitted that the amount awarded for the land acquisition, in the present case is exorbitant and the same should have been awarded in line of the observations made in the judgment dated 12.3.2012. Thus, it is submitted that First Appeals may be allowed and the impugned award be set aside.

3. In response to the aforesaid submission, learned advocate, Mr.Prajapati has submitted that the impugned judgment and award do not require any interference and the same is properly passed. He has submitted that the Reference Court has precisely placed reliance on the sale instances Exh.13 to